Federal-Provincial-Territorial Meeting - Videoconference of the Ministers' Council on the Canadian Francophonie

QUEBEC CITY, June 18, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ - Under the theme Forts de notre Francophonie, the Ministers responsible for the Canadian Francophonie met virtually to reiterate their commitment to collaborate and identify priority areas where advances can be made between now and 2023 in order to promote and protect the Canadian Francophonie.

The Ministers discussed the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the Canadian Francophonie, as well as the crucial importance of bilingual communications in crisis situations. The provision of French-language services in the mental health and elder care sectors and Francophone immigration are among their priorities. Bilingual worker shortages, recognition of professional skills and interprovincial mobility are also major concerns that Ministers want to address over the next two years.

"French is a minority language in Canada, and we must work together to protect and promote it. My colleagues and I are committed to working together, and the discussions of the past two days reaffirm the importance of intergovernmental co-operation to promote this beautiful language that we share and to allow all those who wish to do so to be able to live in French," said Sonia LeBel, Quebec Minister responsible for the Canadian Francophonie and PT Co-Chair of the Ministers' Council on the Canadian Francophonie (MCCF).

"Francophonie makes Canadians stronger every day. That is why the government is determined to move forward towards the substantive equality of English and French, as evidenced by the recent introduction of the bill to modernize the Official Languages Act. The protection and promotion of French and the support of official language minority communities are at the heart of the language reform.  The collaboration that we are building, year after year, within the Ministers' Council on the Canadian Francophonie, will allow us to achieve this goal together" said the Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages for the government of Canada and MCCF Co-Chair.

The Government of Saskatchewan will co-chair the annual Ministers' Council on the Canadian Francophonie meeting in 2022.

The Ministers' Council on the Canadian Francophonie (MCCF), created in 1994, is the only intergovernmental forum that brings together the ministers responsible for the Canadian Francophonie. The MCCF works for an inclusive and dynamic Francophonie that contributes to and participates fully in the development of Canadian society. Visit the Ministers' Council on the Canadian Francophonie website at www.cmfc-mccf.ca.

For more information, please contact

Florent Tanlet
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister responsible for
Canadian Relations and the Canadian Francophonie
[email protected]
418-265-1982

Sylvie Painchaud
Executive Director
Ministers' Council on the Canadian Francophonie
[email protected]
819-212-6420

Catherine Mounier-Desrochers
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages
[email protected]
613-295-3617

Media Relations
Canadian Heritage
819-994-9101
1-866-569-6155
[email protected]

SOURCE Ministers' Council on the Canadian Francophonie