Temporary 'homestays' in Canada could be a risky but necessary solution for Ukrainians fleeing war

When Lavina Gilliland had her first FaceTime call with the Ukrainian mother and child who will soon be sharing her Calgary home, she asked them how they could place so much trust in complete strangers on the other side of the world.

"Her comment to me was quite moving,"Gilliland told CBC News. "She said, 'We've had to learn to trust because that's going to be our only way to survive.'"

Gilliland met the 35-year-old woman and her 10-year-old daughter on the networking site icanhelp.host, which is helping to connect Ukrainians fleeing the warwithprospectivehost families across the world.

Gilliland and her husband are among hundreds of Canadians on the site advertising temporary "homestays" for Ukrainians in need.

WATCH|Canadian woman describes 'complicated' process to help cousin flee Ukraine

Canadian woman describes 'complicated' process to help cousin flee Ukraine

2 years ago

Duration 6:03

Canadian Bohdana Stepanenko-Lypovyk is arranging visas to help multiple Ukrainians flee the war and come to Canada. She is currently hosting her cousin, Valeriia Stepanenko, and tells Rosemary Barton Live that while the visa process is 'very unfortunate and complicated,' she hopes to help more people escape.

More than a week after creating her profile, she said she's been getting a steady stream of about two to four requests per day from Ukrainians looking for a safe place to landin Canada.

She said she expects the mother and daughter whohave no personal connections to Canada to arrive from Poland within the coming weeks. The woman's husband stayed behind in Ukraine. Gillilandalso has helped to arrange accommodations fora Ukrainian family of six, who will be living in a neighbour's unoccupied home.

An estimated four million people have fled Ukraine over the past month.

Connections made over informal and unregulated networks like the one used by Gilliland could play an important role in the temporary settlement ofUkrainians in Canada. But immigration experts and the federal government say that approach comes with hazards.

Unlike the families and community groups that welcome government-assisted refugees, Canadians opening their homes to Ukrainians aren't vetted by the government and may have no experience or training in newcomer settlement.

Christina Clark-Kazak, an associate professor of public and international affairs at the University of Ottawa,said that while such privatearrangements are well-intentioned and may benecessary under the circumstances, they come with a risk of "abuse, exploitation and harm."

"There are definitely risks for families signing up on this website, and there are risks for people that are agreeing to house people coming in," Gilliland said.

Ottawa tryingto safely capture goodwillof Canadians

Speaking toCBC News, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser praisedCanadians for offering an "enormous amount of goodwill" to fleeing Ukrainians.

But he said he's also troubled by the possibilitythat some Ukrainians desperate to escape the danger at home might bevulnerable when they arrive here.

"Despite the fact that the overwhelming majority of Canadians want to do the right thing and to help, there may be people who present a safety risk to the new arrivals, or there may be people who don't know what they're getting into," Fraser said.

"We've been thinking recently on how to make sure that we capture that goodwill in a way that doesn't put people at risk."

Fraser said he's had conversations recently with his European counterparts about the potential threats facing fleeing Ukrainians including the possibility of falling victim to human trafficking.

To minimize the chances of abuse and exploitation, Fraser said, the government is exploring what he called a "coordinated portal" to connect Canadians to incoming Ukrainians.

That system could include safeguards, such as criminal record checks for potential host families. Fraser offered no details onwhen it could be launched.

"They need to figure out a faster way of vetting people," Gilliland said.

Questions remain about other key services

Ottawa has approved more than 12,000 applications for temporary visas under the emergency program for Ukrainian refugees. Fraser said the government has received more than 65,000 applications so far.

The Ukrainians who arrive under the program will have access to some services not typically available to temporary residents, such as language training and job assistance but concerns remain about access to some critical services.

The UkrainianCanadian Congress has called on Ottawa to guarantee Ukrainian refugeeswill have access to services meeting basic needs.

"This includes, first and foremost, a safe way to get to Canada and then a safety net that includes housing and health services," the organization said in a media statement.

Ottawa has said its strategy to welcome Ukrainians is evolving and will adapt to their needs astheyarrive.