A new government strategy aiming at developing the bilingual communities outside Quebec has selected 14 communities to receive funding over the next three years.
The Welcoming Francophone Communities initiative will distribute $12.6 million in funding to help these communities develop programs and activities for French-speaking newcomers in the hopes that they will integrate more easily.
The 14 communities are Prince George, Calgary, Moose Jaw and Gravelbourg, Seine River Region, Hamilton, Hawkesbury, Sudbury, Labrador City–Wabush, Haut-Saint-Jean, Municipality of Clare, Évangeline Region, Whitehorse, Yellowknife, and Iqaluit.
The initiative is part of the Meeting Our Objectives: Francophone Immigration Strategy announced in March 2019, a plan to attract more French-speaking newcomers by making French-language services more accessible.
Emphasizing Canada’s bilingual identity, the strategy encompasses a variety of initiatives to help achieve this goal, some of which are already under way.