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Good news on push to attract skilled migrants

By Latrobe City Council - 5th October 2005 - Back to News

Regional Migration Incentive Fund (RMIF) representatives who made representations on behalf of regional Victoria at the Skilled Migration Expo recently held in London, have reported enthusiastically on the appeal of the state’s regional areas as a destination for skilled migrants.

As part of the Victorian government’s skilled migration program, Latrobe City is working with other Gippsland councils to attract and retain skilled migrants to help meet regional skill shortages and boost the population.

In welcoming the expo reports, Latrobe City’s Chief Executive Officer, Paul Buckley, said comments indicated there had been a lot of interest in regional Victoria from expo visitors on the ‘Victoria's Skills in Demand’ list.

"This list includes skilled tradespeople such as carpenters, electricians, plumbers and fitters, together with engineers, town planners and health professionals. These are the types of skilled people we want to attract to Gippsland," Mr Buckley explained.

"The reports indicate that overall motivations for migrating seemed to be lifestyle, especially wanting a safer environment for children, a more relaxed way of life and a move away from the hustle and bustle, and exorbitant prices of London. Gippsland can certainly deliver in this regard," Mr Buckley said.

Mr Buckley said that by playing a key role in the Regional Migration Incentive Fund (RMIF), a skilled migration strategy for Gippsland has been developed and is now being implemented.

"Under the state-wide program, 11 regions, including Gippsland, are implementing strategies aimed at attracting skilled and business migrants and linking regional employers with services to help them employ skilled migrants," Mr Buckley explained.

Invest Latrobe investment manager, Leo Billington, said that the state government is promoting Victoria internationally as a destination of choice for migrants. "The ‘Live In Victoria’ website advertises job vacancies for potential migrants and newly arrived migrants to view and therefore apply directly to employers," he explained.

"They can also view comprehensive information about the 11 RMIF regions, many of whom have links through the website www.LiveInVictoria.vic.gov.au

"Local strategies developed through the RMIF initiative make use of this website and other state level campaigns such as ‘Make It Happen in Provincial Victoria’. Here in Gippsland, we are also using the skills and expertise of the Gippsland Migrant Resource Centre," Mr Billington said.

Mr Buckley said that Victoria’s current global mission to attract skilled migrants to regional areas includes countries such as Ireland, the Netherlands, India and Germany.

"During October, Victoria will participate in a series of employer expos linking Australian employers with potential skilled migrants in Amsterdam, Berlin and Chennai as well as trade expos in Dublin and London.

"The results of these international expos are being fed back to the Gippsland RMIF committee and as a result we will know more about the likelihood of local skill shortages being met by skilled migrants," Mr Buckley said.

"In addition to international marketing efforts, an employer’s expo will be held in Melbourne on Saturday, 15 October to attract skilled migrants to consider locating in regional Victoria. Overseas students, backpackers and newly arrived migrants are amongst those being targeted to fill skill shortages identified in trades, engineering, nursing and allied health," Mr Buckley concluded.

Source: www.gippsland.com

Published by: news@gippsland.com