Ottawa, January 16, 2010 — Canada will expedite immigration applications from Haitians with family in this country, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced today. Haitians in Canada temporarily will also be allowed to extend their stay.
“I want to express my deepest sympathy and support for the people of Haiti,” said Minister Kenney. “Canada has welcomed a large community of Haitians to this country and is working to reunite families affected by this disaster as quickly as possible. Haitian nationals who are currently in Canada will also benefit from special measures.”
Effective immediately, priority will be given to new and existing sponsorship applications from Canadian citizens, permanent residents and protected persons who have close family members in Haiti. They must, however, identify themselves as being directly and significantly affected by the current situation and notify Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). Priority consideration will also be given to pending adoption cases with the visa office in Port-au-Prince.
New sponsorship applications should have “Haiti” prominently written on the mailing envelope. Sponsors and applicants presently in Canada who have applications in process should notify the CIC Call Centre at 1-888-242-2100 (in Canada only, from 7 am to 7 pm ET Monday through Friday) or by email at question-Haiti@cic.gc.ca to identify their existing applications, if they or the family they have sponsored have been adversely affected.
We are making an effort to restore basic services and CIC will respond on a priority basis for those in Haiti who were directly affected by the disaster. However, the Embassy of Canada has suffered significant damage as a result of the recent earthquake and services are extremely limited. The Government of Canada’s current priority is to work with its partners to provide assistance to Canadians in the area.
CIC is making arrangements to resume visa and immigration services as soon as the situation permits and we have the capacity, including opening another office in the area. As services resume at a location other than the Embassy of Canada, CIC will provide information on where people normally served by the office in Port-au-Prince should submit their questions and applications.
Also effective immediately, CIC has put in place special immigration measures for Haitian nationals who are currently in Canada. Temporary residents already in Canada may apply to extend their temporary status according to normal procedures. These applications will be considered on an expedited basis and fees associated with these applications will be waived. Those who are unable to support themselves may also apply for a work permit.
Further, all removals to Haiti have now been temporarily halted. Although normally the Government of Canada does not deport people to Haiti except in limited circumstances, this now applies in all cases.

 

Toronto, January 15, 2010 – The Office of the French Language Services Commissioner is about to resolve over one hundred complaints that were received in Fall 2008 following the publication of a proposed regulation on the Francophone community’s engagement in the area of health services in Ontario.

Today’s announcement by the government on the adoption of this regulation allowing for the creation of French language health planning entities represents the resolution of one of the longest series of complaints received by the Office to date. It also represents a positive and tangible response to one of the recommendations made by Commissioner François Boileau in May 2009. In his Special Report on Health, the Commissioner recommended that the government “provide for true French language health planning entities for each LHIN or group of LHINs”.

According to the Commissioner, the health planning entities will improve access to French language health services across the province. Moreover, they will improve the quality of these services, while ensuring that they meet the specific needs of the Francophone population.

QUOTES
“I am very pleased with today’s announcement. This is excellent news for the Francophone community, because it is in the best position to understand its own needs and priorities in the area of French health services. The French language planning entities will meet these needs and close a gap that has existed for far too long in relation to the planning of French language health services in Ontario,” stated François Boileau. “We can only hope that the necessary resources will now be made available to the health planning entities so that they can accomplish their mission. Rigorous follow-up will also be required to ensure that a French language services planner-coordinator position is created at a senior management level within each LHIN or group of LHINs. I plan to monitor this very closely,” added Mr. Boileau.

QUICK FACTS
�� The Office of the French Language Services Commissioner received over one hundred complaints in Fall 2008 regarding the publication of a proposed regulation on health services.
�� The French Language Services Commissioner published a Special Report on French
Language Health Services Planning in Ontario, with eight recommendations,
in May 2009.

 

The Ontario Good Roads Association is pleased to announce that Municipal DataWorks has a new portal!

The new portal, www.municipaldataworks.ca , has been redesigned with updated content, easier access to login and an informative training page that includes presentations from past workshops. To assists MDW users, the support page now provides User Guides, Inventory Manuals and a more comprehensive list of FAQs.

As released in December 2009, you will also find information on the new Capital Planning Module, CI3P under What is MDW!

Please note that the link to access the MDW Application has been changed to mdw.municipaldataworks.ca. This link is accessible by clicking Member Login from the home page.

MDW was developed and is delivered as a public‐private partnership and has received financial support from the Government of Ontario represented by the Ministry of Transportation and the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure. Altus Capital Planning (a member of the Altus Group) develops, delivers and maintains the technology on behalf of OGRA.

Currently, over 120 asset types are accommodated within MDW with more planned as required. For more information, please contact support@municipaldataworks.ca

 

OTTAWA (September 22, 2009) — The 20th annual conference of the Association française des municipalités de l’Ontario (AFMO ) provided the Honorable Madeleine Meilleur, Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs, with the perfect opportunity to announce a new initiative geared to Francophone youth. Thanks to this initiative, students from four high schools will be invited, over the course of the year, to become more involved in municipal politics and to provide input on local issues.
"In order to ensure that Francophone communities remain vibrant and dynamic, it is essential that our youth be engaged socially and politically at the local level. Our young people will soon be in charge of shaping Franco-Ontarian society and this initiative will give them the tools to carry this mission forward" , stated Madeleine Meilleur, Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs.
Part of the province's Accent on Youth strategy, a new youth initiative developed by the Office of Francophone Affairs through a partnership with AFMO, is being piloted at schools in communities with large Francophone populations, in Embrun and Casselman in Eastern Ontario, and Kapuskasing, in Northern Ontario. It will help students develop awareness about the issues encountered by municipalities and the way city councillors resolve them.
"This program will allow our youth to follow city councillors in their activities, observe decision-making processes and contribute ideas on how to improve their municipalities", explained Lorraine Dicaire, President of AFMO.

Special recognition

During this annual conference, AFMO, jointly with the Town of Cochrane, honoured several founding members including the founding president, Gisèle Lalonde (former mayor of Vanier), MPP Jean-Marc Lalonde (former mayor of Rockland), Yves Drouin (former mayor of Hawkesbury), and the late Gaston Patenaude (former mayor of Russell). These founders created the AFMO in 1989.

Other highlights of the conference included an announcement by AFMO about the renewal of a partnership with the City of Ottawa that allows the association to consolidate and promote its database of municipal wording, available in both official languages. This archive centre includes municipal documents, in both French and English, which other municipalities can access to help craft the wording of their own documents.

Held in Cochrane, from September 15 to 17, the conference was host to over 250 community leaders, partners and key community players who are involved in the development of the Francophone community in Ontario. These people work in the fields of social innovation, economic development, tourism, education and youth (services). This year, the conference program highlighted a number of entrepreneurial practices, strategies in town planning and other proven mechanisms to help municipalities deal with the current economic crisis affecting our country.

AFMO is comprised of 44 municipal corporations and close to 50 associate members, provincial organizations and institutions that partner with the municipal sector in Ontario. The Association’s goal is to ensure the maintenance and improvement of governance, as well as the delivery of municipal services in both French and English, in the regions of Ontario designated under the French Language Services Act of Ontario.

For additional information, please contact:

 

Office: 613 834-7067
Lorraine Dicaire

President,Cell phone number: 613-715-0585

Jacqueline Noiseux

Chief Executive Officer 
Cell phone number: 613-295-7850

Ottawa - The Francophone Association of Municipalities of Ontario is pleased to announce the renewal of their partnership with the City of Ottawa  to consolidate and promote its database of municipal texts and by-laws available in both official languages. The archive center is available to municipalities wishing to better meet the needs of their Francophone and bilingual residents.

Furthermore, the contribution by the City of Ottawa to this translation project will enable AFMO to offer its members municipal texts of high quality.

Thanks to a contribution agreement between the Department of Canadian Heritage and the City of Ottawa, funding for projects aimed at promoting services in both official languages wil be available. 

$70,000 will be allocated to AFMO to allow municipalities in Ontario access to municipal translated texts in both official languages.

 

For more information

Jacqueline Noiseux

613-834-7067