1.1 Yukon Francophone Community Profile:
The francophone community in the Yukon is mainly concentrated in Whitehorse. Other than for a much smaller group in Dawson City, the rest of the francophone community is scattered throughout the Yukon. The community is dynamic and continues to expand, not only in terms of the number of francophones but in terms of a percentage of the general population of the Yukon. Fourteen percent of Yukoners have a francophone heritage, some 4,500 people. Of these, 1000 still use French as a first language and strongly wish to transmit their language and culture to their children. Many of them are also bilingual and, characteristically, if it is obvious that either they or others will have to wait while a French service provider is located, they will accept service in English.
1.2 The Yukon Model
Yukon francophones and the Yukon government have endeavoured to create services which were "useful, usable and used' . That is to say, they wished to create a French language service model which would serve real needs as well as one which would be economically sustainable over time. That is why the government, in consultation with the francophone community, chose to implement what has been dubbed "the Yukon Model.' There are several important elements to this model. The first is based on the notion that certain services are more effectively delivered by a central agency than by replicating services in each department. A second important element of the model is that French language services are delivered directly to francophones in key or priority areas: communications, health, social services, economic development, justice and public safety, as well as in certain fields of education that are not covered under the Canada-Yukon Agreement on Minority-Language Education and Second Official Language Instruction 2005-06 to 2008-09. These priority areas were developed in consultation with the francophone community. Third, the Bureau of French Language Services serves as a "one-stop information office for clients.' For example, if a francophone client contacts the Bureau for information, staff will do one of two things: refer the person to appropriate francophone service providers in a department or, if there are no French-speaking employees in that area, they will contact the appropriate official, obtain the required information and relay that information back to the client. Alternatively, a Bureau staff member can arrange for both the francophone client and the unilingual service provider to link via telephone so that appropriate interpretation services can be provided.
One of the main priorities for the coming year will be the
establishment of a Directorate, as announced by the Government of
Yukon in 2005. This will be done with direct participation of the
francophone community. As this is a one-year plan, the territorial
government will also be working closely with the francophone
community to further develop goals for the following three years of
a new Agreement
with Canada. The Yukon plans to use the results of the survey that
was conducted last spring to help guide its priorities for the
coming year and the following three years in a new Agreement.
Another priority in the coming year will be to promote the
French-language services offered throughout the various departments
of the territorial government. A major promotion campaign has been
planned within the territorial government. This will include:
The territorial government will also be promoting its French language services to French community at large. To accomplish this goal, the following will be included:
On-going meetings with AFY to ensure that on-going dialogue with the community re future planning re how to maintain and in some areas improve services to the Yukon francophone community.
Several indicators will be used to establish an on-going measure of the effectiveness of the plan.
Satisfaction of the francophone community with services through information gathered from a questionnaire and Premier's tour.
The Yukon Strategic Plan on French Language Services will enable the Government of Yukon to maintain, and in some areas, increase its capacity to support the Yukon francophone community. Through effective collaboration with government departments in the priority areas identified in partnership with the community, this plan strives to maintain and in some areas increase the level of service offered to the francophone community.
The contribution from Canadian Heritage for 2005-2006 is $1,350,000.
| PLANNED ACTIONS/MEASURES 2005/06 | EXPECTED RESULTS | PERFORMANCE INDICATORS | ANNUAL TERRITORIAL AND FEDERAL CONTRIBUTIONS |
|---|---|---|---|
THE BUREAU OF FRENCH LANGUAGE SERVICES:
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BUDGET: Salaries: $547K This includes salaries for 7.2 out of the existing 8.2 positions directly attached to the Bureau. Operational Requirements: $79K Total: $626K |
| PLANNED ACTIONS/MEASURES 2005/06 | EXPECTED RESULTS | PERFORMANCE INDICATORS | ANNUAL TERRITORIAL AND FEDERAL CONTRIBUTIONS |
|---|---|---|---|
1. Health and Social Services:
2. Justice:
3. Community Services:
4. Economic Development:
5. Bureau of French Language
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BUDGET:
Total Salaries for government departments: $594K Total Services for government departments: $130K Total: $724K Note: Salaries for web administrator/translator and the three translators included in the budget for the Bureau of French Language Services The Adult French Language Training Centre budget is covered by Yukon |
| PLANNED ACTIONS/MEASURES 2005/06 | EXPECTED RESULTS | PERFORMANCE INDICATORS | |
|---|---|---|---|
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Services - yukon