Skip to main content
August 25, 2025
MP Viviane Lapointe announces $4.8M for Collège Boréal to strengthen Francophone healthcare in Sudbury
SUDBURY – Viviane Lapointe, Member of Parliament for Sudbury, today announced a federal investment of $4,856,740, to support Collège Boréal in expanding health services in French for Northern and Francophone communities.
-
Collège Boréal will receive $4.8 million to increase the number of students enrolling in and graduating from its Auxiliary Nursing Program.
-
This funding, provided through the Official Languages Health Program (OLHP), is aimed at improving access to healthcare in French and supporting the development of a strong bilingual health workforce across Northern Ontario.
“Northern communities continue to face challenges in accessing health care services in the official language of their choice. Today’s announcement ensures more students can train in both official languages, ultimately leading to more choice for our Francophone communities in the north,” said Viviane Lapointe, Member of Parliament for Sudbury. “By increasing our bilingual healthcare workforce, we’re strengthening our hospitals, supporting our seniors, and making sure every patient receives care in the language they are most comfortable with.”
This investment ensures Northern Ontario students have more opportunities to study and work in French, while helping Francophone families receive the care they deserve close to home.
"Assisting the development of a qualified and bilingual workforce in the healthcare system not only helps addressing the needs of the Francophone community but also helps fill essential specialist positions that benefit society as a whole,” said Daniel Giroux, President of Collège Boréal. “As such, Collège Boréal expresses its sincere appreciation to the Government of Canada for its support in training Francophone nurses whose professional skills and linguistic versatility will make a significant contribution to strengthening our healthcare system."
Collège Boréal is one of four post-secondary training institutions across Ontario, who are members of the Association des collèges et universités de la francophonie canadienne - Consortium national de formation en santé (ACUFC - CNFS), receiving funding.
Quick Facts
-
This funding is in addition to the $15.4 million announced by the Government of Canada in May 2023, to three academic institutions including Université Laurentienne de Sudbury, Collège Boréal, Université de Hearst and community health networks the Réseau du mieux-être Francophone du Nord de l'Ontario, to improve access to health services for Francophones living in a minority setting in Northern Ontario.
-
The OLHP was launched in 2003 and receives funding through the Government of Canada’s Action Plan for Official Languages. The Program supports non-profit organizations, post-secondary institutions and provincial and territorial governments that aim to improve access to health services for official language minority communities (OLMC) - Francophones living outside Quebec and English-speaking communities in Quebec.
-
The “Action Plan for Official Languages 2023–2028: Protection-Promotion-Collaboration” announced that, in addition to existing funding of $192.2 million over five years, Health Canada’s OLHP will also receive $14.5 million over five years (for a total of $206.7 million over five years). This additional funding will support non-profit organizations, provincial and territorial governments and post-secondary institutions that serve OLMCs to train and retain bilingual health professionals, support health networking initiatives as well as innovative projects.
-
Budget 2023 outlined the Government’s plan to invest close to $200 billion over 10 years, including $46.2 billion in new funding to provinces and territories to strengthen Canada’s public health care system. This includes $25 billion of funding through tailored bilateral agreements to meet the specific needs of each province and territory.
Associated Links
