Cultural, scientific and technical cooperation

French cooperation with Canada takes a dual approach: the legal framework, institutions and budgets are separated between Quebec and the rest of Canada. Main areas of focus : university cooperation, the rapprochement of centres of excellence and competitiveness clusters, cultural and scientific cooperation, cooperation on development assistance. In 2011, France’s cooperation budget with Canada (including Quebec) is 1.7 million euros.

Cooperation is active :
 in the areas of new economic, information and communication technologies, as well as in the broadcasting of television programmes (TV5 Quebec-Canada);
 in science and technology (major French [CNRS, INSERM] and Canadian research bodies collaborate in basic research and scientific intelligence);
 in certain “preferred” sectors (agriculture, forestry and arboriculture, fisheries and oceans, medicine-biotechnology).

University and research cooperation is dynamic, but suffers from an imbalance (5,500 French students going to Canada - excluding Quebec - whereas only 1,500 Canadian students travel to France). This cooperation is based on various programmes, in particular financial agreements enabling French students to enjoy the same conditions as Canadian students. In addition, a France Canada Research Fund (FCRF) was created in 2000 to support, on the basis of a bidding procedure, various exchange projects in the areas of research and higher education. It receives an average of 150 applications each year, and 76 projects have been funded in five years. Finally several dozen invitations enable the embassy’s scientific department to finance short missions of Canadian researchers in France, and, conversely, several dozen missions are made available to French researchers who wish to go to Canada.

France is involved in many artistic and cultural actions. Priority is given to cultural and artistic events that may interest a very multicultural new generation, in partnership with festivals or structures that focus on new immigrants.

Development assistance :

A memorandum of understanding was signed in September 2006 with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). It aims to strengthen Franco-Canadian cooperation in several areas of development aid in international fora (IFI, OECD, etc.) and promote joint actions in four main areas (francophonie [French as a world language], governance, education and the environment), as well as in two target countries (Haiti and Afghanistan).

Military and defence cooperation :

Canada has become a key player in terms of promoting peace and security in the world, and today is an essential partner for France. The bilateral dialogue has made it possible to give concrete expression to a certain number of joint projects, such as the creation of the peacekeeping school in Bamako.

Police cooperation :

Police cooperation is intense. At the provincial level, cooperation is particularly active with Sûreté du Québec and, at the municipal level, with the police departments of Montreal, Quebec and Ottawa. The visit of the director general of the national police to Canada (February 2008, to Quebec and Ottawa) made it possible to reinforce our cooperation and find new areas for exchanges.

Judicial cooperation :

Relations in the area of criminal cooperation with Canada are marked by especially exemplary management. France and Canada are bound in particular by an extradition treaty of 17 November 1988 and a cooperation convention of 15 December 1989. Civil cooperation is especially intense and sensitive in the area of the family, which is governed by the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the civil aspects of international child abduction.

Regional cooperation around Saint Pierre and Miquelon :
 annual meetings of the joint regional cooperation committee between Saint Pierre and Miquelon and the Atlantic provinces;
 annual meetings of the Franco-Canadian advisory board on fisheries.

Link: http://www.ambafrance-ca.org/

^{Updated on 29.05.11}