Mr. Chair and members of the committee, good morning.
Let me thank you for inviting the Réseau en Immigration Francophone de la Nouvelle-Écosse, RIFNE, of which I am the manager, to appear before you to speak to two priority issues for francophone communities in a minority setting, the roadmap and immigration in francophone minority communities.
The RIFNE is one of 13 francophone immigration networks in Canada. The RIFNE was born under the roadmap and the strategic plan to foster immigration in francophone minority communities. That’s how the Fédération acadienne de la Nouvelle-Écosse, FANE, the official organization representing the Acadian and francophone community of Nova Scotia, signed the contribution agreements in 2006, first, with the Government of Canada through its Department of Citizenship and Immigration and, second, with the provincial government, represented by the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration. The RIFNE brings together key community organizations that meet four times a year to assess their action plan and strategic plan for francophone immigration.
In my first part, I will comment on the roadmap and then go on to the second part on immigration in francophone minority communities.
Mr. Chair, members of the committee, I cannot begin my remarks without stressing your willingness to act and your commitment as leaders of official languages in Canada. Canadians expect a lot from you, especially our francophone minority communities, as we plan to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Confederation.
Although I'm far from being an expert in the field, I suspect that the main intent of the roadmap is to give Canadians from all backgrounds, without distinction, an equal opportunity to be served in their language by departments and other federal institutions, and to empower them to contribute positively to services in their own language.
Across the province, the Acadian community has made significant progress, particularly in the area of education. I would like to take this opportunity to thank our dear member, Darrell Samson, who has led the community council for over 10 years.