Mid-term report for Official Languages

2. THE ACTION PLAN FOR OFFICIAL LANGUAGES

2.1 Education

2.2 Community Development

Early childhood

Access to health services

Access to justice

Immigration

The economy

Community life

Partnerships with the governments of the provinces and territories

2.3 The Language Industry

2.4 An Exemplary Public Service

2.5 Accountability and Coordination

2.1 Education

MINORITY-LANGUAGE EDUCATION, SECOND-LANGUAGE INSTRUCTION AND BURSARY AND MONITOR PROGRAMS

INCREASE THE NUMBER OF ELIGIBLE STUDENTS ENROLLED IN FRANCOPHONE MINORITY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS OUTSIDE QUEBEC AND SUPPORT FRENCH-LANGUAGE INSTRUCTION FOR THE ANGLOPHONE MINORITY

Activities to date

The provinces and territories have received $12 million, which they are using to recruit more students, prepare them for starting school, upgrade children’s knowledge of French and prepare for the transition of older students to the secondary level.

To help recruit eligible students, several provinces and territories—including Newfoundland and Labrador, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Yukon and the Northwest Territories—have undertaken demographic studies and launched French school recruitment and promotion campaigns. In addition, other provinces, in turn—Prince Edward Island, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta—have created or are improving their kindergarten programs, are seeking to integrate five-year-olds at the elementary level, are proposing measures for assistance to students and parents, and are developing support programs (resources, teacher training and partnerships with local early childhood services). In Nova Scotia, Yukon and Nunavut, emphasis has been placed on the “francization” of kindergarten, grade one or grade two students; efforts have also been made to facilitate the transition of students from pre-school to elementary school.

The Northwest Territories have given priority to creating incentives for choosing French at the secondary level in an effort to prevent student dropouts.

For quality education, tailored to the minority community and sensitive to its culture, the provinces and territories have invested $31 million in the Action Plan for teaching initiatives, closer connections between schools and communities, and communication technology trials.

Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario and Saskatchewan are adding programs, or are adapting existing ones to the needs of special clienteles. For example, in literacy training, teaching resources are being improved. For its part, Ontario is implementing its policy for “aménagement linguistique” (language planning). Some provinces are initiating community “francization” programs and are introducing language and cultural programs in school settings, hiring cultural workers to ensure coordination between schools and the community, or promoting projects to enlarge or complete school–community centres. Secondary schools in Prince Edward Island and Yukon are testing distance learning; Manitoba is doing the same to expand access to specialized programs.

Another investment of close to $1 million has been committed to recruiting teachers and specialists, minority-education training and to the integration of new technologies in teaching practices. Provinces’ and territories’ strategies in this connection often include the promotion of careers in French for teachers or graduates of faculties of education. Activities planned include educational training, mentoring and literacy training. Finally, other measures are designed for the development of on-line teaching tools and Internet support for students.

IMPROVE ACCESS TO POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION IN THE OFFICIAL LANGUAGE OF CHOICE

Activities to date

So that young people in Francophone minority communities do not leave high school or switch to English when choosing a college or university, $9 million has been invested in the development of new programs, in support to student transition at the post-secondary level, and in distance learning and infrastructure.

Several Francophone post-secondary institutions are broadening their program selection e.g. ambulance care, fishing, agroforestry, school administration and preparatory training for various occupations. Also, English universities in Western Canada are offering courses in French. Some provinces, including Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, are developing a welcoming structure, language-development tools and coaching for distance learning to facilitate and encourage learning. In the West, a cross-regional campaign among students who are completing secondary school or are already in college promotes studies and teaching in French. Newfoundland and Labrador is working on defining a strategy for distance learning in French at the post-secondary level and Quebec is doing the same in English for college-level students. At the same time, New Brunswick and Alberta are both increasing the selection of on-line courses and Nova Scotia is modernizing its technology. New Brunswick is reviewing the structure of its entire network of Francophone colleges.

DOUBLE THE PROPORTION OF SECONDARY SCHOOL GRADUATES WITH A FUNCTIONAL KNOWLEDGE OF THEIR SECOND OFFICIAL LANGUAGE

Activities to date

The $12 million or so designed to optimize access to bilingualism was distributed among basic programs, immersion programs, recruitment and training of teachers, and second-language instruction at the post-secondary level. The provinces and territories have different approaches in each of these areas.

Newfoundland and Labrador, for example, use a six-month exchange program and the granting of bursaries to enrich programs, while British Columbia is conducting a pilot project using video conferencing. The teaching of English as a second language in Quebec will be offered from grade one starting in September 2006 and as a result, new program studies, teaching tools and evaluation tools are being developed. In light of the special needs and interests of Anglophone minority students, their skills in French as a second language will be evaluated. New Brunswick too is developing an evaluation instrument to assess linguistic competencies at the grade 12 level.

Immersion programs have been renewed in Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, British Columbia and Alberta. Measures have been taken to increase the number of staff, including a promotional video, programs in the North and in rural settings, a review of existing programs and improvement of teaching materials. Some students have also attended summer camps for 15-to-19-year-olds, weekends and other cultural exchanges in order to enhance oral communication skills with a cultural experience.

The Collège universitaire de Saint-Boniface is working on a campaign to recruit immersion and basic French teachers from its graduates. In addition to identifying teaching candidates, it encourages young people to study in their second official language. Some provinces are developing language and teacher-training programs at summer institutes and development workshops, by offering bursaries and by training leaders. In the West, regions are helping one another by making professional-development resources and late-immersion teaching methods available on line.

Several provinces, including Saskatchewan and British Columbia, are developing new school programs to promote second-language learning after high school completion. Quality French programs in French-language colleges and in the bilingual universities of Manitoba and Ontario encourage Francophiles to develop their second language while working on a diploma. Students are then more likely to go into a teaching career. Prince Edward Island is ready to offer a Bachelor degree specializing in French immersion, with the Université de Moncton. Nova Scotia is encouraging high school graduates and students already enrolled in education to specialize in teaching French as a second language.

IMPROVE BURSARY AND MONITOR PROGRAMS

Activities to date

Beyond the classroom, the Action Plan for Official Languages promised enhanced bursary and monitor programs. The $6 million invested since March 2003 has provided support for the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada, for this purpose.

The Summer Language Bursary Program has changed its name to Explore, and is designed for youth at the post-secondary level. A French enrichment program, known as Destination Clic, was created to offer young Francophones in minority communities an opportunity to improve their command of French. The value of the bursaries was increased by $150 to a value of $1,775 each. According to preliminary data in Summer 2004, over two years the number of bursaries granted for French enrichment rose from 153 to 156, while the number of second-language bursaries rose from 6,614 to 7,371.

The Official Language Monitor Program now includes a full-time monitor program, Odyssée, and a part-time one, Accent. They are aimed at both mother-tongue and second-language development. The monitors’ salaries increased by $1,000 a year in 2003–04 and $1,125 in 2004–05. According to preliminary data in summer 2004, the number of monitors of French as a first language rose from 199 to 225, while the number of second-language monitors went down from 733 to 602.

2.2 Community Development

SUPPORT TO EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT IN MINORITY COMMUNITIES

ENCOURAGE THE PROVINCES AND TERRITORIES TO TAKE THE NEEDS OF FAMILIES IN MINORITY-LANGUAGE COMMUNITIES INTO ACCOUNT

Activities to date

In the context of the initiative regarding early childhood education and child care, Agreements in Principle with British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador all recognize that language is crucial to the retention of culture and identity. They contain clauses designed to improve the learning results of French-speaking children in these communities. These commitments will be given effect in each province or territory’s plans, and will be reflected in their reports on results to Canadians.

LAUNCH NEW FEDERAL INITIATIVES TO HELP EARLY CHILDHOOD IN OFFICIAL-LANGUAGE COMMUNITIES

Activities to date

The amounts invested by Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) in family literacy training exceed the budget provided in the Action Plan. In 2003–04, an additional $5 million was used to develop community strategic plans based on needs studies conducted in the provinces and territories using the $3 million received from the Action Plan for 2003 to 2005. With its partners, HRSDC created a network of experts which conducted studies, organized information sessions and produced videos along with other promotional tools.

In addition, an exchange of information was coordinated among members of this network (parents, teachers, family literacy trainers, linguists and literacy groups), research assignments were undertaken and shared, and work has begun toward the creation of an on-line resource centre to provide access to books, games, videos and teaching material in French.

Regarding assistance for NGOs, Social Development Canada made a contribution to the Commission nationale des parents Francophones for a project called Partir en français. Phase one supports a dialogue on provincial and territorial policies with a view to advancing forms of learning and child care that are sensitive to French culture and language. Phase 2 supports the ability of 13 parent organizations to report on the investments devoted to early childhood development in their communities. The Canadian Teachers’ Federation received funds to develop a grade one entry profile that describes the cultural and language base required for a child to begin school in the Francophone minority system.

The pilot research project on child-care services aims to document the benefits of improved service in French for preschool children living in minority communities. Since September 2004, an advisory committee made up of community representatives, teachers, pedagogues and public servants from Social Development Canada have guided the project design. Two types of data-gathering tools will be used:

•  tools to evaluate the children themselves using specific development indicators; and

•  surveys to compile general data on Francophone children, their families and their communities.

The advisory committee is developing criteria for selecting the communities where it will be launched. At least five will be selected and, in each one, some 40 children will have access to enriched services: improved daycare services in French (development of language skills, cultural activities and school readiness) complemented with family literacy services. Experts are currently finalizing the choice of programs that will be offered.

PROVIDE FRANCOPHONES AND ANGLOPHONES IN MINORITY COMMUNITIES WITH BETTER ACCESS TO HEALTH SERVICES IN THEIR LANGUAGE

INITIATIVES SOUGHT BY THE COMMUNITIES TO IMPROVE THE TRAINING, RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION OF HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS

Activities to date

The 28 university and 24 college programs involved in the Consortium national de formation en santé produced, respectively, 40 and 100 graduates (June 2004). The admission rate to health-care disciplines in French nearly tripled (from 115 in 2003 to 315 in 2004). These institutions have entered into external partnerships to offer study programs and clinical training. For example, La Cité collégiale (in Ottawa) collaborated with Éducacentre (an adult education service in French in British Columbia) to develop a Personal Support Worker course and a Physiotherapy Aide course.

The Consortium organized regional research fora in Spring 2004. These events underlined the importance of making the national granting agencies aware of research in the communities and the need to conduct special studies. The first Forum national sur la santé des communautés Francophones en situation minoritaire was held in Ottawa in early December 2004. Bringing together over 180 researchers, professionals, students, community representatives and representatives of government, the forum discussed governance, social determinants and links among language, culture and health. The retention of professionals in communities remains a crucial issue. Further study is necessary to explain why some leave the field entirely or go to practise elsewhere.

With funds from the Action Plan, McGill University began to examine training needs among health professionals called upon to serve the Anglophone clientele of Quebec’s 16 regions. There are also plans to improve the French capacity of English-speaking professionals working in Francophone communities and to encourage their working in the regions. Other projects will follow thanks to an innovation fund focused on the recruitment of professionals and their retention in communities where a need for services exists. McGill is working with partners that include Health Canada, the 16 regional health and social service agencies in Quebec, the Community Health and Social Services Network, and the communities.

NETWORKING

Activities to date

In addition to sponsoring the research forum with the Consortium, the Société Santé en français (SSF) coordinated the creation of 17 networks, which have become a national model. Composed of health professionals, service institutions, government authorities, training institutions and community agencies, these networks facilitate the circulation of information, communication among local partners and the efficient use of resources. In Vancouver there are now mechanisms to direct Francophones to services in their language. In Winnipeg, a French-language component was created for the Centre Health Link of the regional health office.

The Anglophone communities have set up a provincial network and nine local and regional networks that create partnerships with regional planning bodies, health service providers, research groups and granting agencies, and the communities. The networks are coordinated by the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN).

IMPROVEMENT OF ACCESS TO PRIMARY CARE

Activities to date

Among Francophones, the SSF has gathered 85 projects from all regions in Canada to improve primary health care. Health Canada has funded 67 of them. Aware of delays in the allocation of funds, the department has made a commitment to reallocate up to $3 million that could not be provided in time. Provinces and territories have confirmed their support for the project Préparer le terrain. The goal is to support the development of plans that will include an evaluation of the situation in the various communities in each province or territory, an inventory of priority needs, and strategies to establish appropriate care in French.

Among Anglophones and with the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux du Québec, the Community Health and Social Services Network is promoting an Info-santé line, working on tailoring programs in the local community service centres to the needs of scattered or isolated English-speaking communities, and trying to create an environment adapted to Anglophone residents in long-term care centres. The network has approved some 30 projects in 13 of the 16 regions of Quebec.

IMPROVE ACCESS TO JUSTICE IN BOTH OFFICIAL LANGUAGES

RESPECTING THE LEGAL OBLIGATIONS STEMMING FROM THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE LEGISLATIVE INSTRUMENTS RE-ENACTMENT ACT AND THE FEDERAL COURT RULING IN THE CONTRAVENTIONS ACT MATTER

Activities to date

The team created at Justice Canada completed its first examination of the requirements of the Legislative Instruments Re-enactment Act. This Act is aimed at reviewing texts drafted or passed in a single language since 1867. It requires the Government to report in 2008 on the number and provenance of instruments to be re-enacted by federal institutions. The method of analysis developed to help departments and agencies to identify such texts is under discussion. Justice Canada is currently informing departments of the procedure to follow and what it means for them.

The Contraventions Act has made it possible to incorporate provincial and territorial legislation respecting proceedings related to certain federal offences.

This Act is used as an alternative to the summary procedure provided for in Part XXVII of the Criminal Code.

In 2001, the Federal Court ordered the Government of Canada to take the necessary action (legislation, regulation or other means) so that the quasi-constitutional language rights recognized in sections 530 and 531.1 of the Criminal Code and in Part IV of the Official Languages Act, in regard to people involved in proceedings for an offence, are respected. To comply with the spirit of this ruling, Justice Canada had to recognize these language rights in its agreements and regulations. As of March 31, 2005, amendments had already been made to the agreements and regulations with Ontario, British Columbia, Manitoba and Nova Scotia.

These amendments provide that services will be accessible and that there will be an active offer of service in both official languages wherever demand is sufficient. Collaboration with jurists’ associations and the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages allowed for greater transparency in the implementation of the Contraventions Act. Hence in Manitoba it was possible to initiate a video conferencing system, and Francophones can testify in French even though they live in regions of the province where numbers would not warrant.

FACILITATE THE DELIVERY OF SERVICES IN BOTH OFFICIAL LANGUAGES

Activities to date

The Department of Justice created a Support Fund to facilitate the delivery of services in both official languages. The fund provided French-language jurists’ associations and the national federation with modest, stable funding ($600,000 annually for five years) and supported over 50 projects designed to:

•  improve jurists’ skills in the minority legal language: for instance, by providing training in legal French for stakeholders in Canada’s West and North, given by the Institut Joseph-Dubuc in Winnipeg; and by establishing a Master’s Program in legal translation for law graduates, in collaboration with the Faculty of Law and the School of Translation and Interpretation at the University of Ottawa;

•  create jurilinguistic tools(i.e. pertaining to both linguistic and legal fields), such as the Dictionnaire de droit privé and its counterpart, the Private Law Dictionary, both on Quebec civil law; the updated JURITERM in New Brunswick, the only common law database in French; and the Lexique du droit des fiducies (Common Law), published by Justice Canada and the Translation Bureau;

•  hold workshops and information sessions on the communities’ language rights and government services available in each province, and finally;

•  create consultation mechanisms, which are described in Chapter 1 of this report.

The government component of this consultation structure—the Federal–Provincial– Territorial Working Group—noted that, due to their small number and the limited resources to which they have access, bilingual Crown Attorneys have little contact with their colleagues in other provinces and are cut off from legal resources to equip them to operate in the minority language. They are isolated, and this is prejudicial to individuals who would like to have their case heard in their official language of choice. Justice Canada and the Working Group have taken action to ameliorate the situation. With Ontario, the department has set up the French Language Institute for Professional Development. Efforts have been made to create a network of bilingual Crown Attorneys across the country.

PROMOTE IMMIGRATION TO OFFICIAL LANGUAGE MINORITY COMMUNITIES

PROMOTE IMMIGRATION IN FRANCOPHONE COMMUNITIES

Activities to date

In November 2003, the CIC—Communities Steering Committee declared its intentions in the Strategic Framework to Foster Immigration to Francophone Minority Communities with some clear objectives: increase the proportion of French-speaking immigrants from 3.1% in 2002 to 4.4% in 2008; improve the capacity of communities to receive newcomers; ensure the economic, social and cultural integration of newcomers; and promote larger numbers of newcomers to destinations other than Toronto and Vancouver. In March 2005, Towards Building a Canadian Francophonie of Tomorrow: Summary of Initiatives 2002–2006 to Foster Immigration to Francophone Minority Communities was published.

It is encouraging for minority communities to note that 4.9% of French-speaking immigrants in 2004 settled outside Quebec. The steering committee and CIC hope that this result will become a growing trend in coming years.

Genuine success will depend on the real interest of these immigrants in living in French within minority communities and on the ability of such communities to continue to attract and retain immigrants.

Collaboration with the provinces and territories is indispensable to the achievement of these objectives. That is why the Steering Committee includes partners from Manitoba, the Northwest Territories, Ontario, New Brunswick, British Columbia and Alberta. It is also why agreements with British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick now contain clauses recognizing the importance of developing official language minority communities. CIC will stay the course: such clauses will appear in new and renewed agreements. To consolidate these achievements, the department has supported the design of promotional tools and awareness activities in several provinces. It has produced community profiles and a Web page prototype about them, revised some publications to reflect Francophone minority communities, and ensured a Francophone presence among the immigrants and refugees talking about their lives and successes as part of the Passage to Canada program, an initiative of the Dominion Institute ⁷. CIC has funded the production of a toolbox for small centres wishing to attract and retain immigrants, and has improved its services in French in Edmonton, Winnipeg and Ottawa, in addition to opening a reception centre for Francophone newcomers to Calgary. To facilitate access to new terminology in this area, the Translation Bureau has published Immigration and Refugee Protection Vocabulary. This work, containing some 850 entries, explains terms taken from the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act of 2002.

With the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne du Canada, CIC organized tours promoting the Canadian Francophonie in some Central European and South American cities. The experience was repeated in Africa, this time with cooperation from the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Ontario. In France, a promotion team was created in the Paris Visa Office, and a special issue of the magazine Vivre à l’étranger and also a one-page advertisement in the magazine Paris Match promoted immigration possibilities to Canada’s Francophone minority communities.

Interdepartmental cooperation opens up other promising possibilities. As a member of the CIC—Communities Steering Committee, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada identified 18 of its programs that might assist immigrants to join the labour market. Canada’s Action Plan Against Racism also provides CIC an opportunity to work on making communities more inclusive and making the general public more aware of the contribution of newcomers.

INCREASE COMMUNITIES’ CAPACITY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE KNOWLEDGE-BASED ECONOMY, OFFER BUSINESS INTERNSHIPS AND IMPROVED ACCESS TO ON-LINE TRAINING, AND ENABLE THE COMMUNITIES TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF EXISTING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS

IMPLEMENT THE ELEMENTS OF THE ACTION PLAN FOR WHICH HUMAN RESOURCES AND SKILLS DEVELOPMENT CANADA, INDUSTRY CANADA AND THE REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCIES ARE RESPONSIBLE

Activities to date

In the context of the Action Plan, over 50 internships were made available to young people in 2004–05, at the Faculté Saint-Jean campus and at Collège universitaire Saint-Boniface, and elsewhere, with the assistance of Youth Employment Services.

Through the Youth Employment Strategy, HRSDC 1,429 young people from Francophone minority communities were offered work experience in their communities. They participated in one or another of three programs: Skills Link, which helps them to overcome obstacles and acquire the knowledge they need, Career Focus, which enables post-secondary graduates to get experience in their fields, and Summer Career Replacements, aimed at students. HRSDC also made investments to improve the bilingual nature of the Job Bank service, a system for listing job offers by employers.

Eleven telelearning and distance training pilot projects were put in place by the regional development agencies with universities, colleges and specialized institutes, in fields as varied as international commerce, management of the environment and organic farming, nursing sciences, business administration, law, computer science and forestry.

The Francommunautés virtuelles program funded some 30 projects, including a portal for Acadian communities seeking accessible health resources, programs and services; multimedia content for the Association franco-yukonnaise and its Web site Au Rendez-vous; and a site and regional platform allowing the Comité de l’employabilité et du développement économique communautaire de Trois-Rivières to inform and serve its Anglophone clients.

BETTER ACQUAINT THE COMMUNITIES WITH INDUSTRY CANADA AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY PROGRAMS, AND  FEDERAL MANAGERS WITH THE COMMUNITIES

Activities to date

Industry Canada has hired eight advisors in the five regions where the department has offices, to provide field support for business in official language minority communities. Advisors are assigned full-time to the communities and regularly inform their colleagues and supervisors of progress being made and of any gaps in the application of section 41 of the Official Languages Act. In addition, the department is also developing a lens through which its senior executives and its managers can examine whether their programs and policies reflect the communities’ interests.

Along with implementation of the Action Plan, Industry Canada has placed a priority on 15 of its programs and services, in addition to all those of FedNor, to fulfil federal commitments to promote French and English in society and to support the development of Francophone and Anglophone minorities in Canada. Francommunautés virtuelles, Broadband Services, Canada’s SchoolNet, the Community Access Program by Internet, Student Connections, the Language Industry Program and others will be added to those we have mentioned. The choice of programs and initiatives was validated in consultations held with the Francophone and Anglophone communities, as mentioned elsewhere in this report.

REFLECT MINORITY COMMUNITIES IN THE CONTEXT OF NATIONAL PROGRAMMING

Activities to date

Industry Canada and the regional development agencies conducted four studies on the capacity of their programs to meet the communities’ demands. These studies aimed to identify investments and results, which groups to work with on community economic development, the geographical location of the minority communities and strategies to maximize access to programs. The studies revealed that the investments made by Industry Canada, FedNor, the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and Western Economic Diversification were, in general, proportional to the demographic weight of the minority communities. They showed that these funds could be tracked geographically, but that except in the case of Francommunautés virtuelles and some special activities of the regional agencies, the programs were not designed in response to the nature or interests of minorities.

USE THE OFFICIAL LANGUAGE MINORITY COMMUNITY ENABLING FUND TO CREATE A CLIMATE CONDUCIVE TO DEVELOPMENT

In the latter half of the 1990s, the National Committee on Economic Development and Employability became a preferred tool of government—community cooperation around HRSDC objectives, linked to community capacity and employment planning. In Quebec, a parallel committee plays the same role for the Anglophone minority community.

In 2004, the Government requested that the Support Fund for official language minority communities, (the HRSDC program that funded the committees’ work), be re-examined and that a new interdepartmental partnership model be developed to reinforce community capacity to act in the areas of human resources and economic development.

Community representatives and federal partners participated in examining options. The consultations underscored the importance of preserving the Réseaux de développement économique et d’employabilité, or RDÉEs (Francophone), and Community Economic Development and Employability Committees, or CEDECs (Anglophone), stabilizing funding and better coordinating the actions of federal institutions to avoid duplication and overlap.

On March 23, 2005, the Government announced the creation of the Enabling Fund, with resources of $12 million a year for three years. Program management is the responsibility of HRSDC and interdepartmental coordination is assigned to the Privy Council Office. The Enabling Fund will be evaluated in the context of the Action Plan for Official Languages in 2008. Integrating the program in the Action Plan encourages federal institutions to pool their expertise to help communities; it also encourages the RDÉEs and CDECs to apply to programs other than the Enabling Fund for complementary activities which fall under specific federal institutional mandates to support economic development.

The combined efforts of several departments could thus support different aspects of a community project. Consultations and planning with a view, for example, to high-speed Internet service in remote communities could benefit from the assistance of the Enabling Fund, but the Internet infrastructure would be funded by another participating department; likewise, the acquisition of management skills by members of a local group with a view to undertaking labour-market development could be funded by the Enabling Fund, but the resulting projects themselves would be the subject of proposals to another department or agency.

ASSISTANCE TO COMMUNITY LIFE

CULTURE, COMMUNICATIONS AND COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP

Activities to date

The Department of Canadian Heritage (PCH) has invested $4.5 million to date of the additional $19 million being granted to its community support program over five years in the Action Plan for Official Languages.

Thanks to funding allocated to culture, the Congrès mondial acadien contributed greatly to the visibility of the community in Nova Scotia; in Acadie, visitors gathered from Canada, France, New England, Louisiana and other states. French and bilingual displays remain in place. The French theatre in Saskatchewan benefited from awareness and planning activities by the Troupe du jour to establish a theatre site. The Quebec Arts Summit, organized in November 2004, led to the creation of the English Arts Network, a network of Anglophone artists from all disciplines and all parts of Quebec. The Fédération culturelle canadienne-française has already started on the initiatives proposed by 300 participants in the Forum national sur le développement culturel.

With respect to communications, PCH supported the launch of six community radio stations: the development of Radio Cornwall’s market in Alexandria, market studies and technical briefs for Radio Halifax and Radio Richmond, a recruitment campaign and fundraiser as well as the building of an access road to the antenna and installation of the tower for Radio Missisquoi, the acquisition of a record library and a resource centre in addition to a promotion and funding campaign for Radio Toronto, and finally a frequency application to the CRTC and a technical brief for Radio Victoria. PCH contributed to the strategic interventions of the Alliance des radios communautaires du Canada to produce a best-practices guide and a plan to support small and medium-sized community radio stations.

The alliance and the Association de la presse Francophone collaborated on developing a partnership strategy with the provinces and territories in support of the minority media and of acquiring better communication policies in French.

Regarding community leadership and development, the Quebec Community Groups Network reviewed its strategic directions and expected results in research, in terms of representation of the communities (particularly vis-à-vis the Francophone majority), support for member organizations and its governance structure. The Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne brought together its member organizations interested in communications and formed a working group to facilitate cooperative efforts in minority media. The Fédération de la jeunesse canadienne-française received funding to organize the third Jeux de la francophonie canadienne, in Winnipeg in the summer of 2005. Finally, in Yukon, PCH contributed to the expansion of the Centre de la francophonie.

RENEWED COLLABORATION WITH THE COMMUNITIES

PCH will renew its collaboration with the communities, signing agreements for 2005–06 which represent an increase of 11 percent over the previous year. In the course of the same year, communities could also benefit from a special fund of $2 million for regional initiatives bringing the increase to 19 percent. In the coming years, the department intends to enrich these agreements through a multi-year funding framework open to all official language minority communities.

STRENGTHEN PARTNERSHIPS WITH THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE PROVINCES AND TERRITORIES

PAY SPECIAL ATTENTION TO HEALTH AND EARLY CHILDHOOD AND SUPPORT THE IMPLEMENTATION OF PROVINCIAL AND TERRITORIAL LEGISLATION AND POLICIES

Activities to date

In the priority areas of health and early childhood, Canadian Heritage worked with Ontario and Manitoba. In Ontario, “francization” plans were developed for provincial professional organizations and associations, including diagnostic and intervention tools, and continuing education in French to ensure better service for the Francophone population. In Manitoba, an early childhood centre pilot project, which should serve as a preschool model in French, was developed.

The New Brunswick Official Languages Act was passed in June 2002 and the federal government helped the provincial government provide support to the numerous municipalities and commissions in their delivery of services and in their communications. Similarly, it helped the government of Saskatchewan to implement its policy respecting services in French and is preparing to do the same for Nova Scotia.

CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE FEDERAL–PROVINCIAL–TERRITORIAL CONFERENCE

Activities to date

In addition to renewing support for the national coordination of the group of Officials Responsible for Francophone Affairs (ORFA) for three years, the Government of Canada took part in and contributed to the organization of the Ministerial Conferences on Francophone Affairs. The Ministerial conference of October 2004 put the emphasis on identity and youth and Francophone culture. It also initiated discussion of the mandate of the Conference and the functioning of the group of officials who support it.

The ORFA network brings together provincial and territorial officials responsible for services in French, and representatives of the Department of Canadian Heritage and of the Privy Council Office. The purpose of this forum is primarily to promote intergovernmental collaboration, develop common strategies, and exchange information and experience. The network also enables the federal government to consult the provinces and territories about public policy on Canada’s francophonie, and enables the provinces and territories to make the federal government aware of issues within their area of jurisdiction.

In October 2003, the provinces and territories adopted an intergovernmental action plan, complementary to the Action Plan for Official Languages to work in the areas of intergovernmental cooperation, health in French, early childhood, cultural development, consolidation of the “l’espace Francophone” (including immigration), access to justice in French, and economic development of the Francophone and Acadian communities. Projects conducted by the Ministerial conference include research

into interventions by the provincial and territorial governments to offer services in French and to contribute to the communities’ development, and an initiative to share exemplary practices.

The provinces and territories are keenly interested in the report on the federal Action Plan and in the horizontal management framework associated with it. Committed to the sectoral responsibilities they have undertaken, provincial and territorial governments are interested in new ways of delivering services to citizens. The progress made by Service Canada in this respect could strengthen federal–provincial–territorial collaboration.

2.3 The Language Industry

INDUSTRY AT THE HEART OF THE ACTION PLAN

REMEDY INDUSTRY FRAGMENTATION AND ENHANCE ITS VISIBILITY

Activities to date

Launched in the wake of the Action Plan, the Language Industry Association (AILIA) has organized activities throughout the country, enabling businesses and their partners to interact with each other and build synergies. Participation in Team Canada missions to China and Brazil has contributed to this sector’s prestige abroad.

With Industry Canada, the Translation Bureau and the NRC, AILIA has helped businesses study their needs, identify openings and risks in the market, and then select the technologies for the future in four areas: translation, content management, language training and electronic voice recognition. This technology roadmap exercise has made it possible to determine the strengths and weaknesses of technology and to propose solutions. Some of them may inspire businesses and the CRTL to identify research projects leading to marketable technologies in a more distant future.

Industry Canada has launched promotional and branding initiatives and funded over 50 projects. Businesses identify themselves as Canadian firms at fairs and on missions, helping to increase the industry’s visibility. The fact that companies make equal investments in the projects suggests that leveraging is taking place. The Language Industries Program (LIP) is collaborating with International Trade Canada on the production of a folder for trade delegates and potential clients around the world; a recent document on language professions has inspired a brochure designed for young people to attract them to careers in this field. Finally, in 2004, the AILIA human resources development committee adopted a strategy for the promotion of professions, integration into the workplace, professional development and the development of professional standards.

To remedy the shortage of language professionals, the Translation Bureau has set up a training program intended to encourage the hiring of new professionals within the industry while ensuring that the government can meet its own needs. Between 2003 and 2005, the bureau recruited 388 students. In partnership with ten Canadian universities, the program has trained more than 1,063 students in co-op programs and other training since 1999. To mitigate the critical shortage of teachers, the bureau lent four of its experts to the Universities of Moncton and Ottawa. Because it depends largely on the private sector to ensure the delivery of services to the government, the bureau believes it is essential to strengthen the industry.

HELP CREATE A LANGUAGE TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH CENTRE

Activities to date

The Language Technology Research Centre has been created at the Université du Québec en Outaouais (UQO). It is the product of collaboration by founding agencies, including the university, the NRC and the Translation Bureau. The bureau takes part in the work of the centre, providing access to its terminological data and editing and updating the centre’s Web site. These partners have recently been joined by AILIA and the Corporation de développement économique de Gatineau. The federal government, the Quebec government and UQO have together budgeted $15.2 million for the construction of the building which will house up to 150 experts and researchers. Tools to increase productivity in translation and that will apply to multilingual content and language training will be developed. It is also expected that the centre will position itself as a leader in language standards. Two projects currently under way, Transcheck-2 and Barça, are seeking respectively to create a program capable of identifying various types of translation mistakes and automating the measurement of maintenance and use of words in written communications.

2.4 An Exemplary Public Service

MAKE OFFICIAL LANGUAGES A PRIORITY AGAIN AND CHANGE THE ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE

INVEST IN INNOVATION

Activities to date

The Innovation Program launched in 2003 has been a great success. With a budget of $14 million over five years, it funds implementation of projects that have a ripple effect on bilingual services for the public and the use of both languages at work. It is a two-part program: the Official Languages Innovation Fund for individual institutions, and the Regional Partnerships Fund, which enables federal councils to sponsor projects tailored to local conditions. In 2003–04, the Program funded 18 projects for a total of $800,000. In 2004–05, $1.8 million was distributed to 25 projects. The third year of the program looks promising as over 50 projects were submitted and 32 selected by the evaluation committee.

The program granted $140,000 to Sport Canada to improve its services to the public and particularly to Canadian athletes. The expected results include the updating of basic data for the Olympic and Paralympics being held in Vancouver in 2010. The Regional Council of Quebec received a grant of $175,000 to improve the recruitment of young Anglophones in the federal government. The Federal Council of Newfoundland and Labrador received $50,000 the first year, then $110,000 the second year, for a community- development project and the study of a service delivery model for departments serving the Port au Port Peninsula. The four Federal Councils in the West—Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and Pacific—organized Forum 4-2-1 (four provinces, two official languages, one plan), bringing together federal and provincial stakeholders, teaching institutions and communities. The Strategic Plan of the Federal Councils for the West on Official Languages resulted and guides their actions. On June 17, 2005, the joint effort was rewarded with the Public Service Award of Excellence.

STRENGTHEN THE EXPERTISE AND MONITORING CAPACITY OF FEDERAL INSTITUTIONS

Activities to date

With $12 million over five years from the Action Plan, the Official Languages Branch of the Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada has a more stable budget ($5.6 million in 2004–05) to act as a centre of excellence for other federal institutions. The agency initiated a review to reduce by half the number of policies, and clarify them, emphasize results, include performance indicators, and make them Web-friendly. Revised policies respecting language of work and management of human resources came into effect on April 1, 2004. The new policies on communications with the public and delivery of services, notably the use of electronic networks, came into effect on July 15, 2005.

The agency’s Official Languages Branch is changing the way it exercises its overall monitoring functions. It has implemented a new cycle and a new performance- measurement system enabling it to more easily portray the situation of institutions at any one time. This includes an assessment sheet or trend chart which, combined with information from several different sources, sketches an overall picture.

To support the self-monitoring required by every federal institution, the agency created the Linguistic Needs Designator Tool, which allows managers to determine the minimum number of employees required to provide services in the language chosen by their clients. An electronic survey model was also developed to help institutions assess the satisfaction of their internal audience; the model includes an official languages component and can be adapted to different contexts. These tools may have inspired the decision by Citizenship and Immigration Canada to conduct a review of the linguistic profiles of its positions and to adopt a framework governing language training. The framework requires that the needs of all employees be reflected in their learning plans.

Regarding language of work, the agency evaluated the situation of executives occupying positions designated bilingual. In February 2005, it reported that 98 executives did not meet the requirements of their positions, 46 of whom were required to do so before March 31, 2003. In most cases, institutions had already moved to ensure service delivery and employee supervision in both official languages. The agency continues to monitor the situation.

In July 2004, the agency published the results of an exercise involving 2,210 offices and points of service located throughout the country, representing 166 federal institutions. This Audit of Government of Canada Telephone Services was designed to determine the extent to which the greeting and offer of services respected the official language chosen by the client. The results show a steady, gradual improvement in the situation.

HIRE MORE BILINGUAL EMPLOYEES, IMPROVE LANGUAGE TRAINING AND PROVIDE IT EARLIER IN THE CAREER

Activities to date

The agency has set aside $2.5 million over five years to develop strategies and tools for recruiting bilingual candidates and to fund a study on language training. In 2004–2005, it transferred $450,000 to the Canada School of Public Service (CSPS) to fund a review of the model used for training and language competency testing. The CSPS and the Public Service Commission co-chair this strategic exercise undertaken by a committee of senior officials. The Public Service Commission has been allocated $2 million ($400,000 a year) to promote the hiring of bilingual people, particularly Anglophones in Quebec. A Memorandum of Understanding to this effect has been signed by the Agency and the commission. The work plan includes activities for organizational planning and support, improvement of the commission’s Web site, monitoring of information about candidates’ language proficiency, partnerships with schools and colleges, raising awareness of human resources managers and officers, and promotion of federal public service careers.

The CSPS received $36.1 million for three years as of 2003–04 and began work right away in four areas of activity: managing the increasing demand for language training, reducing waiting lists, improving service for people with learning disabilities, and modernizing learning technologies and materials.

The Language Training Centre (LTC) received 690 new students the first year, 250 more than expected, including those whose names were on waiting lists. The demand in the National Capital Region now exceeds all projections, while in other regions of the country waiting lists have grown. To cope with the situation, the CSPS will continue its collaboration with six schools in the private sector. In 2004–05, with funds from the Action Plan and the cooperation of these institutions, the school planned to train 742 students, including those who started the year before, this year’s students, and 20 with learning disabilities.

The LTC created a unit specially dedicated to students with learning disabilities. It developed a template for their initial evaluation and their learning plan, then contracted the Académie de formation linguistique for a pilot project for training small groups of up to four people. The centre also commissioned a study of its own practices, the recommendations of which are being implemented.

During fiscal year 2004–05, the LTC wanted to computerize its teaching material collection and tailor it to the needs of an increasingly diverse clientele. It transformed documents that formerly existed only on paper, audio cassette or video cassette into a format that can be processed by computer. Several products were converted to Web format and made accessible on the Internet. They will be tailored to meet the cultural, linguistic or technical needs of users. The centre also plans to modernize its electronic infrastructure, remodel its Internet and Intranet sites, create a portal accessible to its students, and enlarge its range of on-line technologies. It also intends to acquire and adapt teaching materials.

2.5 Accountability and Coordination

REMINDER OF RESPONSIBILITIES, HORIZONTAL COORDINATION AND ASSESSMENT OF THE POLICY ON OFFICIAL LANGUAGES 

TAKING OFFICIAL LANGUAGES INTO ACCOUNT IN FEDERAL INSTITUTIONS

Activities to date

Official Languages, Intergovernmental Affairs, Privy Council Office, has presented the concept of accountability and coordination to public servants from all regions of the country, often at the invitation of the Department of Canadian Heritage or the Public Service Human Resources Management Agency: departmental coordinators, official language champions, regional councils, and so on. The Official Languages Law Group (OLLG), Department of Justice, has done many presentations with respect to legal implications.

The directive titled Official Languages Principles for the Preparation and Analysis of Submissions to Treasury Board, issued in 1998 remains in effect. The Treasury Board Secretariat has responsibility for it, and its analysts consult the agency as required.

The examination of policy proposals was the subject of special attention. The OLB identified the critical stages in the routing of files to Cabinet so as to assist in the identification and analysis of the needs or preoccupations of communities or other aspects of official languages policy. Links with those responsible for Cabinet operations contribute to the challenge function exercised by the Privy Council Office. The dialogue between the communities, on the one hand, and the public servants responsible for conceptualizing the mandate and structures of Service Canada, on the other, is one example of these efforts.

Justice Canada has a system for monitoring the media and the legal environment. Those responsible for Cabinet affairs in the department have been made aware of official languages issues and the Official Languages Law Group reviews agendas for Cabinet meetings to determine which subjects may require their counsel. The central agencies share this responsibility and exchange information with one another respecting files to ensure that appropriate interventions take place. The Minister of Justice works with his colleagues to draw attention to the legal repercussions of their initiatives.

To encourage the coordinated implementation of the federal commitment under Part VII of the Act, Canadian Heritage (PCH) has developed a performance-measurement tool to help departments and agencies monitor their progress in the application of Section 41. It offers an inventory of measures according to six categories of intervention: internal awareness, consultation with the communities, communications with them, internal coordination and with other partners, funding and delivery of programs, and accountability. Several departments have also created their own mechanisms for supporting the communities. For example, the Health Canada policy, that came into effect in December 2004 encourages employees to better match their programs and activities to the needs of the minority communities.

HORIZONTAL COORDINATION

Activities to date

The Group of Ministers on Official Languages met regularly, as did the Committee of Deputy Ministers on Official Languages (CDMOL), and both received regular reports from the Support Committee and other senior officials. Issues dealt with included:

•  legal decisions rendered or forthcoming in the area of language rights and the discussion of trends that emerge from them;

•  official languages and public servants (language training, Treasury Board policies, designation of positions);

•  matters flowing from the Action Plan, including the mandate of the CDMOL, the work of consultation committees, coordination of research and the post-censal survey of official languages, tools such as the Web site of the Minister responsible for Official Languages and the Extranet site for federal institutions, etc.;

•  files of joint concern: bilingual service centres, early childhood, Support Fund for the communities, French on the Internet, intergovernmental relations (including the Northern Strategy and relations with the communities); and

•  responses to reports of the Commissioner of Official Languages, proceedings of the House and the Senate (Committees on Official Languages, Bill S-3, and special commissions).

Discussions at the highest levels have facilitated the progress of proposed policies and programs through government. They also led to an analysis of Bill S-3 to amend the Official Languages Act, and its transmission to the Standing Committee of the House of Commons; they have advanced the development of a horizontal initiative on community capacity and employability (the Enabling Fund) and have produced joint responses to several reports by the Commissioner of Official Languages and parliamentary committees. The Commissioner will soon publish a follow-up to her reports on French on the Internet (two in 1999 and two in 2002). The CDMOL has asked the departments concerned to develop a strategy that will reflect the evolution of the context since 1999 and that will provide opportunities to work together.

The Action Plan calls for key departments– including Canadian Heritage, Justice, the Public Service Human Resources Management Agency (on behalf of the Treasury Board Secretariat) and the Privy Council Office–to work together to increase information sharing and foster compliance with government commitments.

In support of horizontal coordination, PCH exercised its interdepartmental coordination function by piloting the Agreement for the Development of Arts and Culture in French, protocols for collaboration in theatre, publishing and the visual arts, and working groups in related fields. In addition, the department organized an early childhood roundtable (March 2005), disseminated a list of programs concerning women in minority situations (2004), and compiled an inventory of federal programs and initiatives concerning the communities (2005). For its part, the Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada kept the CDMOL and the Group of Ministers apprised of the implementation of Parts IV, V and VI of the Act.

The Interdepartmental Coordination Committee on Official Languages Research, chaired by the Director General, Official Languages in the Privy Council Office, reported to the CDMOL and the Group of Ministers. The results of its work and its contribution to the establishment of guidelines for evaluating the Official Languages Program are described in Chapter 4.

The horizontal management framework, which is covered in Chapter 3, is a model of cross-jurisdictional coordination. The decision to create such a tool and its implementation will benefit the public service, its culture and its capacity to deal with the challenges of collaboration among institutions.

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6. Santé en français — Pour un meilleur accès à des services de santé en français, study coordinated by the FCFA for the Consultative Committee for French-speaking Minority Communities, March 2001.

7. Institute founded in 1997 by a group of young people concerned about the erosion of a common memory in Canada.

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