CMEC

The Protocol for Agreements for Minority-Language Education and Second-Language Instruction is a multi-year, multilateral agreement between the Government of Canada and, on behalf of all provinces and territories, the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC). The protocol sets the key parameters for collaboration between the Government of Canada and the provincial/territorial governments on official languages in education and provides a mechanism through which the federal government provides contributions to the costs incurred by the provinces and territories in the delivery of minority-language education and second-language instruction. Under the parameters of the protocol, each province and territory negotiates a cost-shared bilateral agreement that is tailored to the jurisdiction's unique priorities.

The provinces and territories, through CMEC, and the federal government entered into the first protocol in 1983. It was the first major multilateral agreement with the federal government to be signed through CMEC and the first political document to establish pan-Canadian guidelines for federal-provincial cooperation in an area of provincial/territorial jurisdiction. Since then, the protocol has been renegotiated every four to five years to reflect changing circumstances. In September 2009, the Government of Canada and CMEC announced a new Protocol for Agreements for Minority-Language Education and Second-Language Instruction.

Under the new protocol, the Government of Canada will provide the provinces and territories with $1,034,388,000 between 2009-10 and 2012-13.