Taleeb Noormohamed was born in Ottawa, perhaps an early nod to his career trajectory.
In 2021, he was elected to the Canadian House of Commons to represent Vancouver Granville, as one of 338 members of Parliament.
Growing up in Vancouver, public service was instilled in Noormohamed at an early age. Eight-years-old to be exact, and admittedly, it was still top of mind at age 12. Noormohamed recalls his grandfather asking: "What do you need to make the country and the world better? That's the need you need to think about."
Thus, the seed was planted—ultimately creating a path to his successful political career today.
"Working in both the private and public sectors, I came to realize that government was the only place where you can fundamentally alter people's lives," says Noormohamed. "It's where you can make and shape policy that can profoundly improve people's quality of life, literally overnight."
Noormohamed is quick to point out why Vancouver Granville has made such an impression on him.
"The riding is a microcosm of this country, with people from all over the world. Different faiths, Indigenous communities, a Muslim and Jewish population, small businesses, large enterprises, neighbourhoods, and all of the challenges and opportunities that Canada presents."
"I bring my own experiences and diversities to the conversation, and am committed to hearing others, which is incredibly important to me."
That philosophy has effectively carried Noormohamed through his political accomplishments, which began in 2002. "I've always wanted to be able to give back to this place that I love, not just in the city, but in the country, and I want to be part of helping to build that."
As an elected official, Noormohamed looks to motivate dialogue and have conversations with his constituents through continuous outreach, by regularly knocking on doors, holding town hall meetings, and other engaging events.
"It's how I get a sense of where the community and the people are at, where they have needs and challenges and where I can best help," he says. "And that is the greatest privilege of this job. I have the ability to do things that are useful to the people that are depending on me."
Championing important issues for Vancouverites, Canadians
Of his recent achievements, and particularly gratifying to Noormohamed, is working with vulnerable refugee populations and setting them up for success before they come to Canada.
"I'm working with non-profits and others to ensure refugees are getting job and skills training, so when they come to Canada, they're filling important roles in the economy, in sectors where we have a hard time finding workers."
"It's been incredibly rewarding to see folks over the past few years opening their own businesses, hiring and working with people, and becoming part of the fabric of society."
Noormohamed acknowledges that affordable housing is one of the biggest issues in the riding. He recognizes there's nothing more impactful than dealing with the housing crisis.
"As of today, we have either built or have under construction 5,490 units of housing," he says. "That's new units of housing for citizens in this riding, not-for-profit, rental, affordable housing in this community. And that's transformative."
Another important issue is the national pharmacare program. The Liberals have agreed to accelerate the process for universal coverage for birth control and diabetes medication through a single-payer system.
"It's the single biggest advancement in health care in this country in at least a generation," says Noormohamed."
"This achievement affects people of all backgrounds, but has a disproportionately impact on low- and middle-income Canadians for whom these medical necessities are expensive. And being able to reduce that burden on individuals, seniors and families is extremely important."
An optimistic outlook
“When I look at Vancouver, I think about its potential and I believe it's the future of Canada," says Noormohamed. "With all our diversity, whether economic, cultural, or linguistic, we have a model to offer for this country and a lot of opportunity to tell a story that is incredibly optimistic."
"We have challenges we need to solve, and we're working on affordable housing and issues related to ensuring our communities are more livable. But if we work on solving those things together across the public and private sectors, across communities, there is nothing stopping us."
"And it's a story for Vancouver. It's a story for Canada. And to me, that is my personal mission."
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