Mayor’s Message

“Welcoming Ottawa Week (WOW) is a marvelous opportunity for Ottawa residents to join efforts to showcase our nation’s capital as a community open to newcomers. WOW also serves as a forum for celebrating newcomers’ valuable contributions to community building and to the enrichment of Ottawa’s cultural mosaic. 

Ottawa’s economic growth and social development are closely tied to our community’s success in welcoming immigrants and facilitating their integration. Do not miss being a part of WOW 2019!”

2013 Proclamation of WOW by Ottawa’s Mayor Jim Watson

WHEREAS, the last week of June is the week preceding the celebration of Canada Day by all Canadians, when our sense of shared civic identity is at the centre of our reflections; and

WHEREAS, the Ottawa citizens are diverse and a large majority of us originate from immigrants who have settled, raised families and contributed to our community’s quality of life and shaped our civic identity; and

WHEREAS, citizens should be encouraged to recognize the value of diversity and the contributions of immigrants in our community’s economic, cultural, and social life;

THEREFORE, I, Jim Watson, Mayor of the City of Ottawa, do hereby proclaim June 25 to 30, 2013 as the Welcoming Ottawa Week in Ottawa, and call upon all citizens to celebrate the important role that immigration and diversity play in our historic development and very identity.