Ministers meet to discuss francophone issues
Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Jean-Claude D'Amours represented New Brunswick at the two-day event on behalf of Public Safety Minister Robert Gauvin, who is also minister responsible for la Francophonie. The ministers discussed the Francophonie’s contribution to the Canadian economy and the importance of promoting the French language as a competitive advantage. They examined ways to support francophone business succession, facilitate interprovincial trade and contribute to commercial diplomacy efforts to develop markets for francophone businesses.
The ministers also took part in a “lunch and learn” with people from the business community to hear their perspectives on private sector engagement for the prosperity of the Canadian Francophonie.
“New Brunswick's active participation in this annual meeting of Francophonie ministers is consistent with our government's vision to work closely with all our federal, provincial and territorial partners to advance important national issues such as bilingual labour shortages and francophone economic development,” said D'Amours.
As francophone immigration is a priority for the council, the ministers agreed to support a cultural mediation initiative to help employers retain French-speaking employees from immigrant backgrounds.
“As minister responsible for immigration and post-secondary education, I also took the opportunity to reiterate the importance for governments to focus on sustainable initiatives for the inclusion and retention of French-speaking newcomers, and the need to encourage young Canadians from immersion backgrounds to maintain their language skills throughout their careers and lives,” said D’Amours.
“The Francophonie is at the heart of Canadian identity and is a driver to help us build a strong economy,” said Canadian Identity and Culture Minister Steven Guilbeault, who is also minister responsible for official languages. “I am delighted to see that each of us within the Ministers’ Council on the Canadian Francophonie shares a desire to work together to make French a competitive advantage all across the country and to build prosperous francophone communities. In this third year of the action plan for official languages, we continue to act in support of francophone communities from coast to coast to coast. I am pleased to note that we have signed agreements with each province and territory to increase support for government services offered in the minority language, with a historic level of funding, so that Canadians can have access to services in the official language of their choice.”
The importance of communications in French during emergencies was also discussed. The ministers said they would like to work with their emergency management counterparts to promote the sharing of best practices and to discuss ways of increasing communications in French.
The meeting was also an opportunity to unveil the website and digital strategy for the How Far Can French Take You? project, which promotes the French language as a source of personal and professional growth. The site has 13 video clips featuring government employees whose rewarding careers are linked to their knowledge of French.
In addition, the ministers remain concerned about the limited amount of French in Canadian society and discussed ways of making it more visible, especially at major events.