Tuesday, 17 November 2009

Canadian Address Database Helps Immigrants Better Adapt to the Country

By Adriana Noton

An address database can be a godsend to persons who are new to a country. This is especially true for Canada where immigration is an important part of the country's development. Can you imagine being in a new place and having no idea how to find even basic facilities such as a hospital or a restaurant? Adapting to a new country, its culture and accents can be a daunting task for anyone. As such, anything that can help make this process easier is welcomed. Moving around in large cosmopolitan cities such as exist in Canada can be terrifying and confusing for persons from small countries. Many of the new immigrants to Canada come from countries where everyone basically knows how to find everything they need. This is not so in Canada, and can be especially tough for older adults who generally lack the adaptability of teens and younger adults.

What is an Address Database Base?

An Address Database Base is simply a database of addresses. In many cases, such as with the Canadian Address Database, there are more than just addresses. The database contains directions for various businesses and establishments. Many address databases can be quite comprehensive. With the availability of GPS systems and other internet sources, an address database can be useful for immigrants moving to any country, but especially a large one such as Canada.

Why an Address Database can Help Immigrants

Since the Canadian Address Database contains a large number of business locations, immigrants can use it to move around. This tackles one of the major challenges faced by immigrants in any country. No one wants to have to be constantly asking for directions to somewhere can make it harder for to fit in to a new country. This also labels the person as a newcomer. This could be psychologically difficult for the immigrant to handle on a daily basis.

In addition to giving addresses and directions, such a database also makes it possible to know correct postal codes for mail. Canada is a large country and it will take time for an immigrant to know all the postal codes without help. In any new environment people need to be able to learn fast and get things done on their own a lot faster. As well, such a database is also useful in that Canada as it also maintains what is known as the "Canadian National Change of Address" list. This in effect keeps a history of people and businesses that have changed addresses for 36 months, therefore finding businesses and people will not become too frustrating even if they have moved.

Canada is known for being immigrant-friendly and maintaining an address database is just one of the many aspects of helping immigrants adjust to the new environment. The government understands that immigrants need to be assimilated into the country quickly and easily so they can settle in to their new home. The easier the process is, then the sooner they can begin making their contributions to economic development. There can be no doubt that the Canadian Address Database serves a useful purpose in helping immigrants more readily adapt to living in the country.

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