Canada

Being able to swim empowers individuals to make choices, have agency, and be free to choose core aspects of their life, such as working safely on or near water. It is also associated with lifelong health benefits and reduces the risk of drowning. Using data from the Lloyd’s Register Foundation World Risk Poll 2019, this paper provides the first global estimates of adults’ ability to swim without assistance. Individuals in high-income countries are considerably more likely to report being able to swim without assistance than individuals in low-income countries. Disparities also exist within countries. In particular, women are less likely to be able to swim without assistance than men in virtually all countries, birth cohorts, and levels of education. Investing in reducing inequalities in life skills, such as swimming, can foster economic development and empowerment, especially in light of threats, such as climate change.

This report offers an initial overview of the available information regarding the circumstances, nature and outcomes of the education of schoolchildren during the first wave of COVID-19 lockdowns of March-April 2020. Its purpose is primarily descriptive: it presents information from high quality quantitative studies on the experience of learning during this period in order to ground the examination and discussion of these issues in empirical examples. Information is presented on three interrelated topics: the nature of the educational experience during the period of lockdowns and school closures; the home environment in which education took place for the vast majority of schoolchildren; the effects on the mental health and learning outcomes for children during this period. The data come primarily from 5 countries (France, Germany, Ireland, the United Kingdom and the United States) with additional information on some aspects for 6 additional countries (Australia, Belgium (Flanders), Canada, Finland, Italy and the Netherlands). This report will be of interest to policy makers, academics, education stakeholders and anyone interested in a first international empirical analysis of the effects of the pandemic on the lives and education of schoolchildren.

Canada has not only the largest in terms of numbers, but also the most elaborate and longest-standing skilled labour migration system in the OECD. Largely as a result of many decades of managed labour migration, more than one in five people in Canada is foreign-born, one of the highest shares in the OECD. 60% of Canada’s foreign-born population are highly educated, the highest share OECD-wide. The recent introduction of Express Entry, a two-step selection system based on an initial pre-sreening of suitable candidates who enter a pool by Expression of Interest and subsequent selection of the most skilled candidates from the pool, has further enhanced the competitive edge of the selection system relative to other countries. It also ensures that those with the skills to succeed are admitted to Canada in a quick and efficient way. Core to Canada's success is not only the elaborate selection system itself, but also the innovation and infrastructure around it, which ensures constant testing, monitoring and adaptation of its parameters. This includes a comprehensive and constantly improving data infrastructure, coupled with the capacity to analyse it, and swift policy reaction to new evidence and emerging challenges.

Comment peut-on améliorer l’état moyen de santé de la population alors que de nombreux travailleurs quittent encore le marché du travail de façon permanente en raison de problèmes de santé ou d’incapacités, et qu’ils dépendent des prestations d’aide pour survivre ? Dans le même temps, de plus en plus d’adultes en âge de travailler mais affectés d’unhandicap sont exclus de la population active. C’est une tragédie à la fois sociale etéconomique qui frappe pratiquement l’ensemble des pays de l’OCDE, dont le Canada ; et c’est aussi un paradoxe qui mérite explication. Le présent rapport qui fait partie de la série Maladie, invalidité et travail propose uneévaluation de la situation au Canada. Il explore quelques-unes des raisons expliquant ce paradoxe au Canada et la spécificité de sa politique qui implique plusieurs acteurs publics et privés ainsi que différents niveaux de gouvernement pour réduire l’inactivité et augmenter la participation. Il propose une liste de recommandations politiques pour s’attaquer aux disparités actuelles et prévisibles. Le Canada fait face aux mêmes problèmes que les autres pays de l’OCDE : faibles taux d’emploi, forts taux de chômage et risque élevé de pauvreté des personnes handicapées. Cependant, bien que ces chiffres soient en augmentation, le nombre de personnes percevant des prestations maladie ou invalidité à long terme est plus faible au Canada que dans la plupart des pays de l’OCDE. Cette tendance permettra de soutenir dans les années à venir les efforts entrepris par les gouvernements fédéral et provinciaux pour mettre en place un système sur l’incapacité mieux orienté vers l’emploi. En conclusion, ce rapport estime que des changements supplémentaires sont nécessaires, notamment afin de mieux coordonner les programmes fédéraux et provinciaux, de faciliter l’accès aux services et aux aides grâce à un système de guichet unique et à un cadre de responsabilité mutuelle, et d’identifier le handicap et d’intervenir le plus tôt possible. Les employeurs ont aussi un rôle important pour éviter que les gens se détachent du marché du travail.