Ottawa is the Capital of Canada, located in the province of Ontario, at the Quebec Border.
The population of Ottawa is just over 1,000,000 residents.
Both English and French are considered primary languages in the city, which is reflected I the city's commerce and culture.
The city is largely multicultural with a growing migrant population, and is one of the top cities in the country for continuously attracting new-comers due to its society, education, innovation, and economy.
Ottawa is known to hang the most educated population of people from all Canadian institutions, with its high-quality education institutions; including the many post-secondary and research institutions.
Ottawa is ranked as a gamma minus global city, with the highest standard of living and lowest unemployment rates in the country
A study conducted by Canadian Business has ranked Ottawa as the best place to live in Canada, based on its low unemployment levels, low housing costs, strong economy, high income levels, weather, and lifestyle. Another significant factor was the multiculturalism that exists in the city.
The conference Board of Canada has also ranked Ottawa as leading other Canadian cities in knowledge occupations, due to their high use of technology, computing, knowledge intensive processes and creative activity.
In 2010, Ottawa was tied in 3rd place in the World Ranking of Best Eco-Cities.
Ottawa is known to be the region with highest number of residents with a post-secondary qualification in Canada, where over half the population has a college degree, and 43% of the workforce is employed in creative occupations.
Geography
In 2001 Ottawa was integrated with ten other municipalities, with the previous regional municipality of Ottawa- Carleton. The city is located at the junction of the Ottawa and Rideau rivers.
The entire Northern boundary of Ottawa is formed by the Ottawa river, one of the greatest river systems in North America. It is the second largest river in East Canada, extending a total of 1,271 kms.
Most of the Ottawa river is located within the Canadian Shield, and supports thousands of lakes, consisting of the world's greatest concentration of fresh water; equal to the volume of water in all of western Europe.
The highest point in Ottawa is 166m ( 545 ft) above sea level and located 2.6 kms of Manions Corners. The lowest point is located in the Ottawa river at 44 m ( 144 ft) above sea level.
Ottawa has a beautiful countryside, from several parks, with large trees, beaches, rivers and a historical canal.
Demography
Ottawa has a total population of 1.3 million residents, as of 2019
Ottawa is regarded as a primary cosmopolitan centre, with the second largest number of immigrant migrations, following Toronto. It is also a growing destination for French-speaking newcomers.
One in every four residents in the city is an immigrant, and this continues to grow. The largest numbers of immigrations come from Asia and the Middle East, as well as 17% from Africa and 15% from Europe.
The ethnic composition of residents in Ottawa was as follows:
In addition to English and French, other primary languages spoken in the city includes Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, Italian, and German.
Ottawa is home to a bilingual university; University of Ottawa, ranked amongst the top 250 Universities in the world.
Religious affiliations in the city is as follows: 38% Roman Catholics, 6.5% Anglicans, 6.2% United Church, 2% Christian Orthodox, 1.5% Presbytarian, 1.2% Baptist, 1.1% Pentacostal, 6.7% Islam, 1.4% Buddhism, 1.2% Judaism, and about 23% with no religious affiliations.
Culture
Ottawa is a vibrant cultural city, with several historic national sites, art galleries, museums, and famous landmarks such as the UNESCO World Heritage site of Rideau Canal. The city is also lively with its widespread culinary community, boutique shops, and shopping discredits, and the ever-present active nightlife.
Ottawa is renowned for their annual cultural exhibitions, and celebrations from the Canadian Tulip Festival, Winterlude, to multitude of summer music festivals like the Ottawa Bluefest, the Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival, and the Canada Day Celebrations.
Ottawa's culture includes a lot of French influence, due to its recent immigration statistics, adding to its multiculturalism.
Popular museums and galleries in the city includes the National Arts Centre, and the National Art gallery, among the vast number of national museums
Ottawa is home to migrants from Portugal, Italy, China, Germany, Ukrain, and more.
Ottawa is a unique gastronomy destination offering its visitors more than a thousand of eating houses of different trends and types.
Popular sports enjoyed by residents in Ottawa includes: Ice hockey, Canadian football, Rowing, Basketball, Curling, Baseball, Soccer, and Horse racing.
Popular food in Ottawa include Panacake-battered bacon, Sushi burritos, Maple Bacon Doughnuts, Hallah French Toast, and Cantina Chicken Tacos
Residents in Ottawa are known for their punctuality, with employers enforcing strict regulations for working hours. Coming to work late could be a reason for termination from employment
Ottawa is rich in its landmarks and sightseeing attractions such as Parliament Hill, Rideau Canal, Canadian War Museum, National Gallery of Canada, Peace Tower, Canadian Museum of Nature, National War Museum, Canada's cold war museum; Diefenbunker, Notredam Basilica, and Canada Aviation and Space museum.
Climate
Ottawa experiences four distinct seasons, Winter,Summer, Fall, and Spring. Winters in Ottawa are generally ver cold, with cold snaps occurring from November onwards, with snow fall from December, extending into March, and sometimes until April. The average temperature in Winter ( December - March) is -14 degrees celsius.
Spring is short and fresh and usually is mild, with a few rain showers. Springtime is between April and May.
Summer, which runs from June to September experiences average daytime temperatures of 30 degrees celsius, with high levels of humidity.
Fall is from September to November, and has milder but cooler weather, and provinces some of the beautiful landscapes during this time
Winter in Ottawa also provides plenty of opportunities for residents to partake in winter activities, with the Rideau Canal transforming into the longest skating rink in the world, with activities such as skiing, and snowshoeing.
During summer, residents can enjoy picnics and walks in the parks, and the numerous summer festivals.
University Education
Ottawa enrolls approximately 2,000 new International students at its post-secondary education institutions each year.
Key performing industries in the Ottawa economy includes:
Being the capital of Canada, it is no surprise that Ottawa is the biggest contributor to the country's economy, with an ever expanding job market, and opportunities for skilled overseas workers.
A majority of residents in Ottawa is employed in public administration, health care, social assistance, professional, scientific, technical services, and retail.
The GDP of the Ottawa economy is over $40,000,000, with over 500,000 jobs, more than 25,000 employers, and over $2.5 billion in venture capitalism.
Two key sectors of the Ottawa economy is high technology and federal government, offering high paying jobs for knowledge workers in a stable environment.
The average income in Ottawa is $73,500 per annum, the highest of all Canada's cities.
The rural economy in Ottawa also contributes to its overall GDP, including agriculture, retail sales, construction, forestry, mining, tourism, manufacturing, personal and business services, transportation, and more.
Tourism is a major industry for Ottawa, which is booming due to the large numbers of sightseeing visitors and travelers that come in each year. To cater to this demand, several job positions are available in hotels, restaurants and other related service industries in the hospitality sector.
Healthcare and public service is another primary economic sector, providing free healthcare facilities for its residents. Due to the large aging populations, jobs in this industry, such as caregivers, nurses, doctors, and surgeons are growing.
The technology sector has opened up several opportunities in jobs such as software development, engineering, telecommunications, environmental tech, and more.
Manufacturing industry us thriving in Ottawa, and provides several opportunities for foreign workers looking to expand their skill-set or pick up a new trade.
