Sudan war: ‘Pipo dey sell dia gold to bring family to Canada’

Aya neva sleep properly for two weeks.

Ova 6,000 miles away from di 34-year-old home for Ontario, Canada, her brother, aunts, uncles and cousins dey caught up for Sudan war.

Like many odas, dem dey on di move, dem dey run from di conflict since fighting break out between rival factions of di military government for April 2023.

Her brother, wey dey live wit serious disability, manage to cross di border into Egypt. But di rest of her family don split up and now dem don scata across Sudan.

But for di first time in months, Aya, and families like hers, still get hope say sometin fit happun.

At di end of December, di Canadian goment announce family reunification scheme wey go allow 3,250 Sudanese pipo to migrate permanently to Canada.

E fit be lifeline for di lucky few.

To qualify for di scheme, Sudanese nationals must be di child, grandchild, parent, grandparent, or sibling of Canadian citizen or permanent resident.

Di family member in Canada must prove say dem go fit financially support di migrants on arrival.

Di migrants must also pass medical examination, plus biometric and security screening. (Anyone applying for permanent residency for Canada go do screening to make sure say dem no pose any kind of threat to national security or public safety.)

On arrival, di migrants go fit study and do paid work for Canada and eventually apply for citizenship.

Last month, di Canadian goment also improve di immigration process for Sudanese residents wey dey live for Canada, dem waive application fees for visas and allow dem extend dia stay.

According to UNHCR, Canada na one of di kontris wey offer any kind of family reunification for di Sudanese.

However, some members of di Sudanese-Canadian community say di pathway to migration go dey easier.

“Di Canadian goment suppose finance and facilitate dis family reunification process, as dem do for Ukrainian refugees,” Nisrin Elamin, Assistant Professor of African Studies and Anthropology at di University of Toronto tok.

Elamin say Sudanese refugees go dey able to apply for di same level of goment funding – CDN $3000 – offer to Ukrainians fleeing di Russian invasion.

Aya also tink say Canadian goment suppose offer more financial support.

Currently, di scheme require make di family member for Canada earn minimum of CDN $27,514 or get CDN $9,900 in savings.

One tok-tok pesin for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada tell BBC say, “di financial requirements of dis program dey modelled on di same minimum income requirement wey dem dey use for oda family reunification programs.”

Canada recently open similar programme for Palestinians for Gaza. Di financial requirement increase wit each pesin wey dey apply to come to Canada.

Aya dey already struggle to support 23 members of her extended family for Sudan and Egypt.

“Most of us dey spend all of our personal finances. We don take multiple jobs to do di humanitarian work wey Canada suppose dey for di forefront.”

Ranya Elfil wey be member of di Sudanese Canadian Community Association, tok say while di policy na great step, pipo dey struggle wit di financial requirements as many don already use up dia savings to support dia family for Sudan.

“I dey see ladies wey dey sell dia gold so dem go fit bring dia families,” she tok.

Elfil also tok say getting di necessary medical, security and biometric information dey almost impossible for Sudan – forcing pipo to go to neighbouring kontris.

“In all of Sudan, dem get one authorised centre wia pipo fit do medical check,” she tok.

Sayda Hassan, Sudanese citizen, wey dey hope to join her brother for Canada along with her mother and brother, recently travel around 200 miles from Omdurman to Atbara to get dia paperwork.

“Di trip dey difficult and tiring,” she tok.

“Plenti checkpoints dey along di way wia di army dem seriously search and interrogate us.”

But, despite di hardships, she tok say getting di opportunity to go to Canada dey wonderful.

“Wen my family and I go finally reunite? E go be happy moment!”, she tok.

Sayda brother, Ismail, wey dey live for Ontario tok say e dey “excited to see im family” but e dey concerned say di scheme no go fit benefit plenti pipo.

“Di pathway dey very limited in terms of number of applications. Di 3,250 fit dey consumed by probably less dan 1000 families, if di average sponsor submit four applications,” E tok.

Canada policy announcement follow high outburst of fighting for Sudan. In recent months, di Sudanese army don lose control of several areas of di kontri.

On January 21, di International Organization for Migration Displacement Tracking report say ova six million pipo don displace within Sudan as a result of di conflict.

Around 1.7 million pipo don run comot across borders into neighbouring South Sudan, Chad, Ethiopia, Egypt, di Central African Republic and Libya.

UNCHR for Sudan don beg oda kontris to match Canada migration offer. Applications for Canada process go open February 27.

As well as helping oda Sudanese families, Ranya Elfil don also already start gathering di documents she go need to bring her husband family to Canada.

E go include her father-in-law, her two sisters-in-law and her brother in-law with im new baby.

“Dem call dia new daughter Amal. E mean hope,” she tok.