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The parliamentary delegation that represented the Canadian Branch at the 30th Regional Assembly of the America Region of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF) and the Conference of Branch Chairs (CBC) in Toronto, Canada, on August 4 to 8, 2014, has the honour of presenting its report. The delegation from the Canadian Branch of the APF was made up of the Hon. Senator Paul E. McIntyre, QC, President of the APF, and MP Bernard Trottier, Acting Chair of the Canadian Branch. The delegation was accompanied by François Michaud, Association Secretary. In addition to the Canadian Branch, the Alberta, British Columbia, Haiti, Louisiana, Manitoba, New Brunswick, New Hampshire, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec and Saskatchewan branches also participated in the working sessions. The Parliamentary Secretary General of the APF and the chargé de mission for Africa were also present. Conference of Branch Chairs The CBC took place under the chairmanship of Carole Poirier (Quebec), current Chair of the CBC and Vice-Chair of the Quebec Branch. Minutes of the APF Bureau meeting Pascal Terrasse (France), APF Parliamentary Secretary General, presented the highlights of the APF Bureau meeting held in Ottawa in July 2014. Report from the Chargé de mission The delegate for the America Region chargé de mission, France Gélinas (Ontario), presented a report on the regional activities that had taken place since the last CBC in August 2013. Statement of revenues and expenses, America Region Dominic Dumont, Regional Executive Secretary, presented the 2013–2014 statement of revenues and expenses and the 2014–2015 budget estimates for the America Region of the APF. Update on resolutions Dominic Dumont presented a status report on the resolutions adopted in Regina in 2011, in Toronto in 2012, in New Orleans in 2012 and in Quebec City in 2013. It was decided that the next Conference of Branch Chairs would again be held by videoconference in mid-February 2015. For the record, this initiative of the America Region was adopted following a proposal by the Canadian Branch at the August 2012 CBC. Regional Assembly of the America Region Opening of proceedings Pascal Terrasse, APF Parliamentary Secretary General, outlined his proposals to make the APF a stronger assembly. He also paid tribute to the outgoing APF President, the Hon. Andrée Champagne, PC, retired Canadian senator. The Hon. Paul E. McIntyre, APF President, set out his priorities as International President. He also paid tribute to the Hon. Andrée Champagne, who retired in July 2014. France Gélinas, Vice-Chair of the Ontario Branch, welcomed the delegates and presented the theme of the regional assembly. Reports on social media Simon Desras, President of the Haitian Senate; Bernard Trottier, Acting Chair of the Canadian Branch; Hector Goudreau (Alberta), Marc Dalton, (British Columbia); Eric Lafleur (Louisiana); Robert Théberge (New Hampshire); Wes McLean (New Brunswick); Lena Diab, Minister of Justice, Minister of Immigration and Attorney General (Nova Scotia); France Gélinas (Ontario); Carole Poirier (Quebec); Cathy Sproule (Saskatchewan); and Emily Doiron, Secretary of the Prince Edward Island Branch presented reports on this topic. Steve Ladurantaye, head of News and Government Partnerships at Twitter Canada, gave a presentation entitled “[translation] Better use of social media to promote social engagement: strategies for parliaments and elected officials.” The assembly also conducted a field visit to the Canadian Broadcasting Centre, and attended a presentation by the President of CBC Ontario’s French‑language services and a working meeting with a panel of social media experts. For the first time ever, parliamentarians from the America Region held a joint working meeting with the Francophone Youth Parliament of the Americas (FYPA), whose first meeting took place in Toronto. A resolution on the Quebec City Declaration (which came out of the work of the interparliamentary seminar on the 20th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and the Beijing Platform for Action, held in Quebec City in January 2014) was adopted. By participating in the meeting of the Conference of Branch Chairs and the assembly of the America Region, the Canadian Branch achieved its goals of meeting its international and regional obligations, presenting a report, representing the budgetary interests of the Canadian Branch, maintaining regional contacts and representing its interests. Respectfully submitted,
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