Immigration Pathways, Job Services Outside Of Quebec Outlined
TORONTO: Federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for immigration and for the Canadian Francophonie have discussed concrete actions to increase Francophone immigration outside Quebec – building on the momentum from the first Forum on Francophone Immigration in 2017 in New Brunswick.
Francophone immigration contributes to the country’s prosperity and is an important part of the country’s immigration strategies to support the growth and vitality of Francophone minority communities across Canada, an official statement said.
Federal Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Ahmed Hussen and Ontario Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Laura Albanese, co-chairs of the meeting, together with other provincial and territorial ministers, have announced a new federal-provincial-territorial FPT Action Plan for Increasing Francophone Immigration Outside of Quebec.
The Action Plan outlines actions that federal, provincial and territorial governments can take individually or collaboratively to increase Francophone immigration.
Examples of concrete actions in the Action Plan include:
• Promoting awareness of Francophone immigration opportunities, immigration pathways and settlement services to prospective French-speaking applicants;
• Increasing employer engagement in French-speaking immigrant recruitment and employment;
• Increasing the availability, awareness and accessibility of French language services; and
• Supporting diverse and inclusive Francophone communities.
The Action Plan supports the following outcomes:
• an increased number of French-speaking immigrants settling in Canada outside Quebec;
• an increased participation rate of French-speaking immigrants in local labour markets; and
• an increased participation rate of French-speaking immigrants in broader communities and social networks.
Ministers agreed that the tracking of progress to achieve the objectives laid out in the Action Plan will be key. To this end, ministers committed to develop appropriate indicators and to foster the ongoing sharing of best practices to enable the reporting of progress over time. They will also continue to share progress periodically with each other and the community.
Following the Forum, a Symposium will be held with community organizations to act as a catalyst for broader stakeholder engagement and lay the foundation for potential collaborative actions within each jurisdiction. The Symposium will be organized by the Ministerial Conference on the Canadian Francophonie and will take place on March 22 in Calgary.
The Forum on Francophone Immigration is an opportunity for federal, provincial and territorial immigration and Francophonie ministers to meet and share ideas on how to encourage and promote Francophone immigration to Francophone minority communities in Canada.
Under the Canada-Quebec Accord, Quebec fully assumes sole responsibility for establishing immigration levels, and for the selection, francization and integration of immigrants. In areas under its responsibility, Quebec develops its policies and programs, legislates, regulates and sets its own standards.
Ahmed Hussen said: “The federal government is committed to helping to build and sustain Francophone minority communities across Canada, in part through Francophone immigration. Today’s meeting is an opportunity for us to demonstrate real leadership through our own actions, and by mobilizing others – such as employers and communities – to support the directions set out in the FPT Action Plan we are approving today.”
Laura Albanese, Ontario Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, said: “Ontario is home to Canada’s largest Francophone population outside Quebec and our province is committed to achieving our target of 5% Francophone immigration.
The FPT Action Plan for Increasing Francophone Immigration and Ontario’s initiatives to attract and support Francophone newcomers will strengthen Ontario’s vibrant Francophone communities and help us meet our labour market needs.”
Mélanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage, said: “Our commitment to the Canadian Francophonie is reflected in our actions. Francophone immigration is an integral part of the measures we are putting in place to support the vitality of French-speaking minority communities.”
Marie-France Lalonde, Ontario Minister of Francophone Affairs added that: “Ontario’s Francophonie is strong, diverse and inclusive. The concrete approach outlined in the FPT Action Plan announced today is a step forward in strengthening our Francophonie in Ontario and across Canada.”
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French-speaking immigrants contribute to the strength and prosperity of our country, while adding to Canada’s rich cultural and linguistic diversity. Francophone immigration plays a role in maintaining the vitality of Francophone and Acadian communities across Canada but it also helps address labour market needs and helps sustain Canada as a bilingual country.
To maintain the 2016 demographic share of the francophone population in Canada outside of Quebec, 275,000 new French-speaking immigrants would be required by 2036.
The annual number of French-speaking economic immigrants to Canada outside of Quebec increased from 850 in 2003 to 2,400 in 2017.
However, as the decline of the proportion of the Canadian population (outside of Quebec)using French as their first official language continues, despite our current efforts and accomplishments, more work is needed.
Therefore, there is a need for increased efforts to attract, select, integrate, and retain French-speaking immigrants.
This calls for a sustained, multi-sectoral and cross-jurisdictional response that builds on actions taken to date and identifies new ways of collaborating to develop and implement new solutions.
This Federal/Provincial/Territorial (FPT) Action Plan for Increasing Francophone Immigration (Action Plan) outlines a plan that governments can implement, in collaboration with stakeholders, to improve the promotion, selection, settlement, integration and retention of French-speaking immigrants to Francophone Minority Communities (FMCs), using tools and approaches that are suitable to each community. This recognizes the diversity of FMCs across Canada – ranging from large urban centres to small rural communities.
Caption: The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Federal Minister of Immigration, and the Honourable Laura Albanese, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration for Ontario, attend a joint meeting of the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Forum of Ministers responsible for Immigration and the Ministerial Conference on the Canadian Francophonie. [Honourable Chris Palmer (P.E.I.), Honourable Wade McLauchlan (P.E.I.), Shafiq Qaadri (ON), Honourable Marie-France Lalonde (ON), Honourable Laura Albanese (ON), Honourable Ahmed D. Hussen (Can), Arif Virana, (Can), Monsieur Jean-Marc Fournier (QC), Honourable Al Hawkins (NL), Honourable Gilles LePage (N.B.)]