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SMIS national working group

Resolution number
1
Whereas
  1. Certain clients will not be accessing the services they need if they are aware that information about them will be transmitted to the government;
  2. NGOs' integrity cannot be comprised by supplying confidential information to the government;
  3. NGOs are not satisfied that SMIS has taken into consideration the operational implications or workload on them, nor are they convinced of the accuracy and therefore usefulness of the performance indicators;
  4. Citizenship and Immigration Minister Marchi announced the creation of a National Working Group to reach a compromise agreement on outstanding issues that will be mutually acceptable to the NGO community and the Government;
Therefore be it resolved

That the CCR urge: 

  1. That a moratorium be placed on the implementation and piloting of the SMIS until such time as a mutually acceptable agreement is reached by the National Working Group;
  2. That the National Working Group be comprised of:
    1. one provincial representative nominated by each of AMSSA, AAISA, SAISA, MICA, OCASI, and one for the Atlantic Region;
    2. an Information Technology Expert, nominated by the CCR;
    3. a legal expert on privacy, nominated by the CCR;
    4. an expert on programme evaluation, nominated by the CCR;
    5. a refugee client of a CCR member agency;
    6. an immigrant client of a CCR member agency;
    7. government staff including Settlement and Integration Policy, Research and Settlement Operations;
  3. That the National Working Group be co-chaired by an NGO and a government representative;
  4. That the agreements reached by the National Working Group be implemented in a timely fashion;
  5. That the NGO representatives keep the refugee and immigrant services organizations fully informed of the progress and seek their input including but not limited to the following issues:
    1. client confidentiality
    2. who has access to the reports produced
    3. a review of the mandatory information required
    4. what clients and programmes can be exempt from the SMIS reports
    5. the use and the meaningfulness of the performance indicators
    6. what kind of reports will be generated and how will they be used
    7. the security of the data
    8. what process will be used to ensure that planning will be collaborative;
  6. That sufficient funding be made available to the NGO representatives for:
    1. travel
    2. consultation
    3. telephone and fax
    4. expert advice
    5. honoraria for refugee and immigrant client representatives.
Working Group
Immigration and Settlement