Why do we have Bilingual Service Centres?

The Bilingual Service Centres are a direct result of the recommendations in the Chartier Report, Above All, Common Sense. In 1997, Judge Richard Chartier was commissioned by the Government of Manitoba to study and report on the implementation of its Policy on French Language Services. His report recommended the concentration of French Language Services in single window outlets.

The federal government quickly became interested in the idea of providing services to the public through a single window approach. While identifying which programs should be offered in the new Centres, other organizations expressed their interest in participating in this new venture.

Therefore, each Centre therefore has its regional characteristics and services that respond to its region's specific needs.

As recommended by Judge Chartier, the Bilingual Service Centres facilitate the active offer of French language services in the regions of Manitoba where the French-speaking population is concentrated.

The Centres provide a wide range of federal, provincial, municipal, and community-based services under one roof. The Urban Region Service Centre was officially opened in April 2002, the Red River Region Bilingual Service Centre in October 2002 and the Mountain Region Bilingual Service Centre in March 2003.


Role and Mission of the Centres

To provide a wide range of bilingual government services while promoting the active offer of services in the French language within theFrancophone milieu.

Bilingual Government Service Centres will fulfill this mission by:

• Offering bilingual services within designated bilingual areas of the province from communities that have been identified as having a high degree of French language vitality;
  
• Ensuring that all Centre employees are bilingual in order to provide citizens with a range of services in the official language of their choice;
  
• Promoting the use of French as the language of work and day-to-day operations/interactions within the Centres;
  
• Providing the public with a single-window approach to dealing with civil servants from municipal, provincial and federal governments, as well as staff of some non-government organizations;
  
• Creating a hub for bilingual government services in the designated areas of the province;
  
• Encouraging the coordination of services offered within the Centres;
  
• Adopting information technology to provide access points for regionalized information distribution and electronic service delivery;
  
• Promoting the Centres and their services through public awareness campaigns; and
  
• Maintaining a community and Centre-based evaluation process that allows for service improvement and an evolution in the deployment of government services.