Forty people took the last official step to becoming Canadians on Wednesday at a citizenship ceremony held at the Ukrainian Museum of Canada in Saskatoon.

For many, the first step was getting through their first Canadian winter, which was a common theme overheard in discussions before the ceremony.

“But we did it, here we are!” said Elizabeth Afonga, who came from Nigeria with her husband Sunday in 2019.

As a caregiver, Afonga said she appreciates the job opportunities she’s found in Canada, adding that she and her family are happier and healthier than they’ve ever been.

Coming from Lagos, a sprawling megacity that’s home to tens of millions of people, Sunday said he appreciates Saskatoon’s more laid-back pace of living, and the small kindnesses that seem to be second nature to the people here.

“My first experience was someone holding the door open for me when I went to the bank, and I was like, ‘People are very nice here!’ “ he said.

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Md Khairul Islam said he landed a good job as a software engineer since coming to Canada from Bangladesh, and added that becoming a citizen will open even more doors for him in his field. He said he is grateful, and aware that he’s been fortunate, as he knows many new Canadians who are having a harder time getting established.

He said he’s been struck by Canada’s natural beauty, and appreciates his new home’s peaceful society and the protection of human rights enjoyed by people here.

“People are very kind and generous; they are supportive, helpful. I think it is good for my kids, the next generation, to live in a peaceful environment,” he said.

The ceremony, co-hosted by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and the Institute for Canadian Citizenship (ICC), was presided over by historian and author Bill Waiser.

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As a 2017 recipient of the Order of Canada, Waiser is entitled to officiate at citizenship ceremonies, which he called “the greatest privilege” of receiving the nation’s highest civilian honour.

He called it an honour to be part of a milestone for people who have put in hard work to become citizens, noting he suspects many born-and-raised Canadians would likely find it “challenging” to pass a citizenship test, not to mention the work of learning a new language and adapting to a new culture and climate.

“It’s about stories,” Waiser said. “My family, generations ago, were immigrants to Canada, and these people are the most recent immigrants, and they have their own stories.”

Saskatchewan took in slightly more than 43,000 immigrants between 2016 and 2021, according to Statistics Canada data. About 17,500 settled in Saskatoon.

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The number of immigrants taking up Canadian citizenship has fallen; an ICC media release issued in February pointed to 2021 census data showing about 46 per cent of permanent residents become citizens within 10 years. That’s down from 60 per cent in 2016 and 75 per cent in 2001.

The report did not suggest a reason for the decline, but warned the trend “has the potential to harm Canada’s long-term economic, social and democratic resilience. Immigrants are not just workers, but future voters and civic leaders.”

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