Federal-Provincial-Territorial Ministerial Conference on Francophone Affairs

The Intergovernmental Action Plan on Francophone Affairs intends to give effect to the Declaration of Principles of Government Leadership with respect to the Canadian Francophonie adopted at the Ministerial Conference on Francophone Affairs (MCFA) in 2002. This first annual plan will guide the efforts of the group of Officials Responsible for Francophone Affairs. It proposes a series of collective initiatives with respect to various francophone affairs issues.

A. Provincial / Territorial Initiatives

1. Government Leadership and Promotion of the Canadian Francophonie

a. Adopt working tools that will serve as framework guidelines for governmental actions on the enhancement of French-language services.

b. Carry out the 2004 intergovernmental project involving a poster on francophone development in Canada.

c. Use the new Intergovernmental Francophone Affairs (IFA) Web site to promote awareness of the MCFA and its objectives and activities.

2. Health services in French

a. Identify actual interest in, and opportunities for, intergovernmental cooperation with respect to regional or a national French-language health line(s) and, if applicable, determine the necessary measures to achieve this cooperation.

3. Intergovernmental Cooperation

a. Follow-up on the initial work done with respect to the renewal of the federal – provincial/territorial agreements on the Promotion of Official Languages.

b. Renew the project on the national coordination of intergovernmental francophone affairs.

B. Federal – Provincial / Territorial Initiatives

1. Francophone Early Childhood Development

a. Identify practical ways of facilitating the development and implementation of francophone early childhood development programs through federal-provincial/territorial partnership.

2. Economic Development of Francophone and Acadian Communities

a. Identify opportunities for cooperation with the community as well as intergovernmental action to support francophone economic and tourism development.

3. Francophone Cultural development

a. Convey, at the National Forum on Francophone Cultural Development being held September 24–28, 2003 in Moncton, through the New Brunswick Minister of Intergovernmental and International Relations, a message of openness towards cooperation on this issue.

b. Identify the potential for government-community cooperation and for intergovernmental action to support francophone cultural development in the context of follow-up to the national Forum.

4. Access to Justice in French

a. Determine criteria for the active offer of justice services in French that various governments could use to assess and enhance their offer of such services.

5. Strengthening of the Francophone Community

a. Prepare an information document that depicts the geographic and demographic situation of the francophone and Acadian communities, as well as that of the population able to speak French, so as to reflect pertinent notions of the “francophone population”.

6. Intergovernmental Cooperation

a. Develop strategies for interdepartmental and intergovernmental cooperation that particularly ensure partnerships with the provinces and territories to facilitate full implementation of the federal Action Plan for Official Languages.

b. Promote the development of innovative models (such as multi-level government service centres, single window outlets, etc.) to facilitate the delivery of French-language services.