Francophone Community Grants Program promotes French language and socio-economic development
October 28, 2020 Francophone Affairs
TORONTO ― The Ontario government is providing $1 million to 30 organizations as part of the 2020-21 Francophone Community Grants Program. The projects, selected through a competitive process, span several key sectors, including health and wellness, information technology, community services, arts and culture, and each provides opportunities to celebrate and empower Ontario's Francophone community.
The announcement was made today by Caroline Mulroney, Minister of Francophone Affairs.
"Our government recognizes that Ontario's Francophone community represents an important economic lever and that Francophone entrepreneurs and businesses greatly contribute to Ontario's prosperity," said Minister Mulroney. "That's why we are supporting organizations that serve Francophones through the pandemic and contributing further to a vibrant Franco-Ontarian community."
The Francophone Community Grants Program helps support the vitality of the Franco-Ontarian community, with a focus on promoting the French language, as well as the community's socio-economic development in Ontario. It aims to improve front-line services and strengthen the capacity of organizations to provide services in French.
Grant recipients are located in communities throughout Ontario and have developed initiatives like workshops for Francophone immigrants, webinars to train northern health professionals, translation services for rural farming communities, and the purchase of equipment to enable the virtual broadcast of French-language artistic performances.
Selected projects begin on or after October 15, 2020 and end on or before March 31, 2021.
Today's announcement reflects the Ontario government's commitment towards Francophone community and economic development and follows a recently announced $500,000 investment by the government to support the creation of a Francophone business network and to promote Franco-Ontarian products and services.
Quick Facts
- The Minister of Francophone Affairs has been holding extensive consultations with the Francophone business community since 2018 to learn about the challenges they face, the opportunities that could be seized, and what the government can do to maximize the economic well-being of Francophone communities.
- The Ontario Francophone community has seen important gains recently, most notably the successful launch of the Université de l’Ontario français (French-Language University) as well as the appointment of a new French Language Services Commissioner, Kelly Burke, under the Ontario Ombudsman who this Fall is slated to publish her first annual report, which is highly anticipated by the Francophone media and key stakeholders.