Calgary's Indian-origin mayor says Canada 'defiantly open' to people from around the world

Calgary's South Asian-origin mayor Naheed Kurban Nenshi has said that Canada is "defiantly open" at a time of global backlash on the free movement of people and trade. 

Calgary's Indian-origin mayor Naheed Kurban Nenshi said, "What is critical about the success of Canada is that in a world which is increasingly defined about the closure, closed borders, close heart, closed minds the Canadian mindset is: We are defiantly open..open to people, open to the best ideas."

He added, "I always brag that the H-1B visa in the US is almost impossible to get but the equivalent visa in Canada can be processed within ten days. We continue to be open to people from around the world, particularly to people from the sub-continent."

Calgary is the third-largest city of Canada and one in ten people in the city is of South Asian descent. 

When asked about his Indian origin, Nenshi said, "My family is a part of the great Indian diaspora, we are Kutchi Gujarati. My story is an interesting one, our family came from Tanzania to Canada, but what is extraordinary is how ordinary it is. People of South Asian-origin are great leaders, of their own right, in Canadian businesses, the government, several NGOs, and are really well integrated into the community."

"Butter chicken is the single most eaten dish in Canada," Nenshi said amusedly.

The mayor also pointed out that now is the time to strengthen links between NRIs in Canada because of "great opportunities" that await there.

Naheed Kurban Nenshi was sworn in as Calgary's 36th mayor on October 25, 2010, and
was re-elected in 2013 and 2017.

Hoping to build stronger ties between his city and India, he said "We are very excited about building stronger links between India and Calgary, in general with Canada and in particular with Calgary. We need to build on existing business and family links."