Official Languages committee  That's an excellent question. I believe it needs to be well planned. We need to see at least 30% more funding. Then we may have to catch up. We can't keep having this discussion about funding again every five years. In the base funding, we have a catch‑up period to be established.

Official Languages committee  Thank you for the question, Mr. Lefebvre. As president of Collège Boréal, I am often asked the same question: people ask me how I manage 38 sites in 26 communities and how it can be viable. As Mrs. Cardinal mentioned earlier, the educational institutions are really part of the community.

Official Languages committee  Thank you very much. I am also an accountant by profession, and there is no doubt that the more direct transfers we receive from our partners, the better off we are. We have other agreements, for research specifically, under which we receive direct funding from the federal level.

Official Languages committee  Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I would first like to send my regards to Marie‑France Lalonde and Paul Lefebvre, who are old friends of the Collège Boréal. Ontario has 24 public colleges. Only two of the colleges are francophone and the Collège Boréal is one of those two. The Collège Boréal has 38 access centres, located in 26 communities all over Ontario, from Windsor to the small community of Hearst, about which you heard a presentation earlier.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Absolutely. I will let Mr. Bourquardez answer that question.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  You make an excellent point. I'd like to point out that 90% to 95% of Collège Boréal's programs offer internships as part of the curriculum. Before graduating, students must complete a mandatory unpaid internship. I feel one of the great advantages of our programs is that we've integrated the internship into our educational approach.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Absolutely.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Thank you for the question. When it comes to targets in terms of international students, we are talking about global targets. Collège Boréal still has room for students in a number of areas. For instance, we have programs in agriculture, technology and business administration.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  We always rely on facts. For example, around 25% of participants are accepted and come to Collège Boréal. We're therefore at a disadvantage if you consider the number of students who apply and come to Collège Boréal compared to other students from countries such as China or India, for whom the percentages are much higher, that is, 65% to 70%.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  I will give the floor to Mr. Despatie, who knows biometrics much better than I do.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Thank you for the question. It is certain that the decision to allow students to complete 50% of their studies online or remotely has had a very positive impact at Collège Boréal. Since September, we have received a number of students, and we have been surprised to see how many of them could continue their studies online or remotely.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  I would ask our expert in this field, Mr. Bourquardez, to answer the question.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Good afternoon, everyone. I thank Marc Serré, member for the Nickel Belt riding, which is located here, in the City of Greater Sudbury. My name is Daniel Giroux, and I am the president of Collège Boréal. Collège Boréal has 38 institutions in 26 communities across Ontario. In addition to offering 80 post-secondary programs and ongoing programs in French at the collegiate level, we provide training in skilled trades, continuous education and a number of other related services.