Summary - Horizontal evaluation of the Roadmap for Canada’s Official Languages 2013–2018 and evaluation of the Coordination Program

Horizontal Evaluation of the Roadmap for Canada’s Official Languages 2013–2018: Education, Immigration, Communities

Description

The Official Languages Act is composed of 14 parts. According to Part VII of the Act, the Department of Canadian Heritage (PCH) is responsible, among other things, for the Horizontal Coordination of Official Languages, which includes the Horizontal Coordination of the Roadmap for Official Languages in Canada 2013-2018.

The Roadmap for Canada’s Official Languages 2013-2018: education, immigration, communities is a horizontal initiative that represents an investment of $1124 million over five years (of which $886.9 million is permanent fund and $237.1 million is renewed and/or new funds. The Roadmap supports 14 federal departments and agencies in the implementation of 28 initiatives under the three following pillars of intervention: education, immigration and communities.

There are two federal partners in the Education sector who benefit from a five-year investment, they are:

  • National Research Council Canada: $10 million, and
  • Public Services and Procurement Canada: $16 million.

There are three federal partners in the Education and Communities sector who benefit from a five-year investment, they are:

  • Justice Canada: $89.8 million;
  • Health Canada: $17.3 million; and
  • Canadian Heritage: $571 million.

There are eight federal partners in the Communities sector who benefit from a five-year investment, they are:

  • Employment and Social Development Canada: $80.5 million;
  • Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions: $10.2 million;
  • Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency: $6.2 million;
  • Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada & Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario: $6 million;
  • Federal Economic Development Agency of Southern Ontario (FedDev): $4.4 million;
  • Western Economic Diversification Canada: $3.2 million;
  • Canada Council for the Arts: $2.7 million; and
  • Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency: $400 000.

The federal partner in the immigration sector who benefits from a five-year investment is:

  • Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada: $149.4 million.

At the level of the governance structure, three bodies have the mandate for the horizontal governance of official languages at the federal level:

  • The Committee of Assistant Deputy Ministers on official languages;
  • The Executive Committee of Assistant Deputy Ministers on official languages; and
  • The official language Directors General Forum.

Relevance

What is working well

The Roadmap meets many of the needs of official language minority communities (OLMCs) and is consistent with departmental priorities.

The results of the 2016 pan-Canadian public opinion survey: Appreciation and perception of the Canada’s two official languages notes, in general, that linguistic duality is perceived as an asset for Canadians. Here are seven facts, among survey respondents:

  • 60 percent of the Anglophones and 84 percent of the Francophones agreed that linguistic duality is a source of cultural enrichment
  • 76 percent of the Anglophones and 94 percent of the Francophones agreed that kknowledge of both languages improves the chances of finding a job;
  • 74 percent of the Anglophones and 61 percent of the Francophones agreed that the Government effectively protects both official languages;
  • 89 percent of the Anglophones and 93 percent of the Francophones agreed that Francophone/Anglophone immigrants are welcome in communities;
  • 62 percent of the Anglophones and 95 percent of the Francophones agreed that high school graduates should have a working knowledge of both official languages;
  • 79 percent of the Anglophones and 94 percent of the Francophones agreed that learning both official languages contributes to a better understanding among Canadians; and
  • 34 percent of the Anglophones and 74 percent of the Francophones agreed that the future of French is under threat.

Challenges

However, the Roadmap has to adjust to emerging needs:

  • Early childhood and youth;
  • Seniors;
  • Newcomers; and
  • Official language linguistic minority media.

Recommendation 1: respond to the emerging needs of official languages minority communities and government priorities by focusing on programs/initiatives that can achieve the results of the next multi-year official languages plan.

Effectiveness

What is working well

This illustration presents some notable results per initiative for the period of 2013-2014 and 2014-2015. It also presents the ultimate and immediate outcomes as well as the initiatives by pillars: Education, Immigration and Communities.

The ultimate outcome is: Canadians live in both languages and recognize the importance of English and French for Canada’s national identity, development and prosperity.

The three immediate outcomes by pillars are:

  • Education: Opportunities for education in both official languages;
  • Immigration: Language skills are strengthened; and
  • Communities: The vitality of the two official languages and the communities that embody them is enhanced.

The initiatives by the three pillars are:

  • Education:
    • Support for minority-language education;
    • Support for second-language learning;
    • Summer language bursaries;
    • Exchanges Canada;
    • Language Portal of Canada;
    • Official-language monitors;
    • Strengthening of the language industry and language technology;
    • Training, networking and access to justice services (Education component); and
    • Network, training and access to health services (Education component).
  • Immigration:
    • Immigration to official language minority communities; and
    • Language training for economic immigrants.
  • Communities:
    • Intergovernmental co-operation;
    • National Translation Program for Book Publishing;
    • Support for official language minority communities;
    • Community Cultural Action Fund;
    • Market access strategies;
    • Contraventions Act Fund;
    • Enabling Fund for official language minority communities;
    • Training, networks and access to justice services (Communities component);
    • Network, training and access to health services (Communities component);
    • Social Partnership Initiative in official language minority communities;
    • Official language minority communities Literacy and Essential Skills Initiative;
    • Music showcases; and
    • Economic Development Initiative.

Some notable results by the three pillars are:

  • The Education pillar:
    • 527 exchanges involving official language minority communities took place (results derived from the Exchange Canada initiative); and
    • 1452 health professionals received training (results derived from the Training, networking and access to judicial services initiative (Education component).
  • The Immigration pillar:
    • 80 organizations received funding (results derived from the Immigration to official language minority communities initiative); and
    • 75,698 economic immigrants have enrolled in language courses (results derived from the Language training for economic immigrants’ initiative).
  • The Communities pillar:
    • 700 organizations were funded (results derived from the Community Cultural Action Fund initiative); and
    • 759 artists from official language minority communities were supported (results derived from the Music showcases initiative).

Challenges

  • Little complementarity between initiatives. Only some of the federal partners are of the opinion that the Roadmap contributes to a wider impact than the sum of its components;
  • The grouping of initiatives by pillar aims at enabling partners to work on achieving common results, but in fact the current structure favours work in silos.

Recommendation 2: better define results and common horizontal indicators to demonstrate a wider impact than the sum of its components.

Other challenges

  • No indicators and data collection for common results by pillar and for the ultimate outcome; and
  • Lack of detailed data to better identify needs for intervention and understand the impact of programs on official language minority communities (measuring results).

Recommendation 3: conduct ongoing research in support of the initiatives of the next official language plan and on a broader scale for the development and vitality of official languages minority communities.

Efficiency

79 percent of the funds are permanent.

21 percent of the funds are renewed or new funds.

For the renewed or new funds, there is a difficulty in attributing the contribution of new investments to the achievement of results.

Challenges

Confusion between existing programming versus new initiatives or renewed funds or new funds.

Recommendation 4: establish a monitoring mechanism to distinguish the results achieved through new investments.

Evaluation of the Official Languages Coordination Program– Part of the Horizontal Coordination of the Roadmap for Canada’s Official Languages 2013-2018: Education, Immigration, Communities

Description

The Official Languages Act is composed of 14 parts. According to Part VII of the Act, the Department of Canadian Heritage is responsible, among others, for the Horizontal Coordination of Official Languages, which includes the Horizontal Coordination of the Roadmap for Official Languages in Canada 2013-2018.

The governance structure for official languages includes three bodies:

  • The Committee of Assistant Deputy Ministers on official languages , which develops strategic directions on official languages
  • The Executive Committee of Assistant Deputy Ministers on official languages , which acts as governing board regarding strategic direction on official languages;
  • The official language Directors General Forum, which provides leadership in terms of official languages.

The Horizontal coordination of the Roadmap is part of the Official Languages Coordination Program and it role is, among others, to coordinate the work of 14 federal partners responsible for the implementation of the 28 initiatives of the Roadmap.

Its activities consist, among others, to:

  • Plan and coordinating the governance, accountability and reporting of Roadmap partners;
  • Support decision-making;
  • Strengthen governance.

Toward the goal of achieving its ultimate outcome: “Canadians live and flourish in both official languages and recognize the importance of English and French for Canada’s national identity, development and prosperity”.

Relevance

What is working well

  • The part of the Horizontal Coordination of the Roadmap meets the needs of Roadmap partners; and
  • Is consistent with official language government priorities.

Challenges

Needs to further harmonize with roles and responsibilities:

  • Roadmap partners do not distinguish between the horizontal coordination functions of official language and the Roadmap, and the rest in terms of official languages;
  • Roadmap is perceived as the government initiative in terms of official languages; however, most of Roadmap initiatives take only in account part VII of the Official Language Act;
  • Since 2015, there has been no official language Minister, but the PCH Minister has been assigned to this role even if her mandate is directly related to part VII of the Official Languages Act.

Recommendation 1: further articulate official languages governance.

Effectiveness

What is working well

  • The template and indicators developed for partner accountability have been simplified;
  • Roadmap partners are satisfied with the support received; and
  • Reporting feeds the information provided to PCH Minister and other Minister partners.

Challenges

  • Partners do not report on common indicators;
  • Difficulties in distinguishing the indicators and results from the Roadmap coordination and those of the official languages coordination; and
  • Roadmap partners noted that there isn’t sufficient detailed information exchange on results achieved.

Recommendation 2: strengthen the capacity of partners to report on their contribution to horizontal results.

Efficiency

Challenges

  • No systematic data on the effectiveness of Roadmap coordination function; and
  • The human and financial resources allocated to Roadmap coordination cannot be clearly identified.

For example, the estimated budget for the program was of a total $8.5 million, and 13 full-time equivalents; however, the actual data is not available

Recommendation 3: establish a resource tracking mechanism.

Other: communication

Challenges

  • Lack of communication of the expected results of the Roadmap to the multiple stakeholders.

Recommendation 4: implement other ways to communicate more detailed information on the achievement of the expected results of the next plan.

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