Province launches campaign to recruit American doctors

The Government of Saskatchewan kicked off a digital recruitment campaign last week in partnership with the Saskatchewan Healthcare Recruitment Agency (SHRA) encouraging physicians from the United States to consider practising in Saskatchewan. The campaign highlights current career opportunities, upcoming physician-focused information webinars, and will promote the many benefits such as competitive compensation, lower cost of living, work/life balance and stability offered in Saskatchewan. Acknowledging the uncertain political climate in the United States, the advertisements note the stability and security doctors, and their families can experience here. The digital campaign will be directed to physicians currently practising in several states. Emergency medicine physicians, anesthesiologists, and family physicians are part of the focus of these recruitment efforts.

Province leads country in rate of organ donations

Saskatchewan will promote and celebrate National Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Month (NOTDAM) this April with a variety of activities. Green Shirt Day (GSD) was held on April 7 to honor Logan Boulet, who died in the Humboldt Broncos bus crash and whose legacy inspired nearly 150,000 Canadians to register as organ donors. The Saskatchewan Health Authority’s Organ Donation Program has seen a remarkable 75 per cent increase in deceased organ donors in the 2023 calendar year compared to the previous year. According to the latest report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information, for the first time ever, Saskatchewan has achieved the highest rate of deceased organ donors in the country, with 28.9 donors per million population. One organ donor can save up to eight lives and one tissue donor can help 75 people.

Housing starts way up in province

On April 15, Statistics Canada released data showing that urban housing starts in Saskatchewan increased by 96.5 per cent in the first three months of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. This places Saskatchewan first among the provinces for growth in this category. In March 2025, urban housing starts in Saskatchewan increased by 160.8 per cent, compared to March 2024. This ranks third among the provinces for year-over-year growth. In March 2025, housing starts on single family dwellings increased by 90.8 per cent, and multiple units increased by 193.3 per cent, compared to March 2024. Housing starts are a measure of the number of new housing builds where construction has begun. Private capital investment in Saskatchewan increased last year by 17.3 per cent to $14.7 billion, ranking first among provinces for growth. Private capital investment is projected to reach $16.2 billion in 2025, an increase of 10.1 per cent over 2024.

Amendments introduced to deal with derelict structures

On April 9, Minister Eric Schmalz introduced amendments to The Construction Codes Act to support the Government of Saskatchewan’s pilot framework to assist municipalities in dealing with derelict structures. Derelict buildings can present economic, financial and social challenges for municipalities and can be costly to maintain or remove. At the Saskatchewan Association for Rural Municipalities’ annual convention in March, the provincial government announced the development of a pilot framework intended to help eligible municipalities dispose of these structures as well as provide a training opportunity for local volunteer fire departments. “We have heard from SARM, SUMA and other municipal leaders that have asked for this opportunity to provide training scenarios for our world class volunteer firefighters that are the cornerstone of our rural communities,” Environment Minister Travis Keisig said in a news release. “We look forward to seeing the continued collaboration that will benefit many across our province.” The pilot framework’s parameters are being developed in partnership with multiple ministries and agencies and details will be available to municipalities in summer 2025.

Provincial exams for Grade 12 students being eliminated

The Government of Saskatchewan will be winding down the Grade 12 provincial examination program at the end of August 2025 as work continues to develop a provincewide student assessment program. Discontinuing provincial exams creates a more equitable system for Grade 12 students in Saskatchewan. Saskatchewan is currently the only province where some students are required to write provincial examinations in certain Grade 12 subjects while others are not. In the 2023-24 school year, only 25 per cent of students needed to complete a provincial exam. Adults and home-based learners will be able to enroll in Grade 12 courses through the Saskatchewan Distance Learning Centre or applicable post-secondary institutions to earn Grade 12 credits. The Ministry of Education continues to collaborate with education partners on the Saskatchewan Student Assessment program (SSA) announced in November 2024. When implemented, SSA will provide parents, students and teachers a snapshot of student performance in Grades 5 and 9 mathematics and Grades 4, 7 and 10 English language arts as well as a common understanding of what it means to be at grade level. The SSA program is being developed as part of the Provincial Education Plan. The goals of the SSA program are to provide a fair and objective measure of how students are doing, help guide instruction and assist schools, school systems and government in improving student achievement.

Further information about the SSA program is available at saskatchewan.ca/assessment.