Thousands of Saudi students defy order to leave Canada

Thousands of university students from Saudi Arabia remain in Canada despite being ordered out of the country by their government last August, but planning is underway to mitigate the impact on Canadian universities when those students graduate and are not replaced, writes Kayla Hounsell for CBC.

The decision was the result of a diplomatic crisis that erupted when the Canadian government publicly urged Saudi authorities to release jailed women's rights activists. The Saudi government responded by recalling its ambassador, ejecting Canada's ambassador, halting some trade and investment, and cancelling its scholarship programme.

The King Abdullah Scholarship Program covers tuition and living expenses for Saudi students at universities around the world. When they finish their studies, graduates are expected to return to Saudi Arabia to help fill gaps in the labour market. Data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada shows that as of December 2018, when universities publicly report their enrolment, there were still 5,100 Saudi students studying at Canadian universities, compared to 7,620 in December 2017, prior to the diplomatic dispute.
Full report on the CBC News site