Consultations to Identify French-language Service Priorities

Acadian and francophone Nova Scotians will have a say in determining the priority French-language services to be provided by the provincial government.

Consultations that will lead to the development of regulations for the French-language Services Act are now underway. Those regulations will outline how provincial government services are to be provided to French-speaking Nova Scotians.

The Office of Acadian Affairs has been working with members of the Fédération Acadienne de la Nouvelle-Écosse (FANE) -- a cross-section of Nova Scotia's Francophone and Acadian organizations -- to develop a process for obtaining community input. The first step in this process is a day-long consultation session, to be held Thursday, May 25, with FANE members.

"Government offers a large number of services and programs and we want to make sure that the ones provided in French are the ones the community most wants to see," said Chris d'Entremont, Minister of Acadian Affairs. "Our discussion with FANE and its members will provide us with the insights we need to prepare draft regulations that reflect their priorities."

A discussion paper, which poses a number of questions about government service delivery was distributed to representatives of various Acadian and francophone groups on Tuesday, May 9. The discussion paper is also available on the Acadian Affairs website at www.gov.ns.ca/acadian/e/act.asp for broader public comment.

The Acadian and francophone community will be invited to provide more feedback before the regulations are finalized.

Nova Scotia will make the first regulations under the French-language Services Act by December 2006. It is expected the regulations will evolve over time as government's French-language services are expanded.