On June 5th, 2017, in Ottawa, Languages Canada and the Ministry of Education of the Mexican State of Guanajuato signed a cooperation agreement to formalize and expand collaboration in English and French language education.
“[To] educate is to transform people. [To] educate is to have a better society. Education is necessary and vital to the construction of a learning society; it simply cannot develop itself without knowledge,” said Mr. Eusebio Vega Pérez, Secretary of Education for the State of Guanajuato.
The signing, held at the University of Ottawa, was followed by a roundtable meeting with 12 Languages Canada member programs, including Cath D’Amico, President of the Board of Directors of the association. The objective of the meeting was to identify the tools and mechanisms necessary to operationalize the agreement, and develop a program framework to strengthen English and French language education in the public school system of the state of Guanajuato, with the participation of Canadian language experts. Members represented at the roundtable included: Algonquin College, CLLC Ottawa, CultureWorks ESL, University of Guelph, Interlangues Language School, Université de Montréal, the University of Ottawa, the University of Toronto and Trent University.
Mr. Jorge Hernández, EDUCAFIN’s Director, stated that “My work (passion) is for the young population of Guanajuato to be brave, dream big and transform their destinies forever with the strengths provided by education. An international and intercultural education allows them to find the affinities and differences that build agreements and promote peace, development and sustainability to our society.”
The signing of the agreement is timely; Mexico’s new Ambassador to Canada, Mr. Dionisio Pérez Jácome, has only just arrived in Canada to assume his post as head of mission. The agreement is indicative of the importance of education collaboration in the Canada-Mexico relationship. Unfortunately, Ambassador Pérez was travelling outside of Ottawa at the time of the signing and could not attend. Mr. Martin Benjamin, Director General for North American Strategy, Global Affairs Canada, also presided over the ceremony on behalf of the Government of Canada.
“Mexico is a long-standing market for Canadian language programs which is experiencing a real re-emergence. This cooperation framework agreement between Languages Canada and the State of Guanajuato is an important step in positioning language education as a high priority for the Canada-Mexico relationship. Now is a great time to collaborate with educational partners in Guanajuato to enhance student mobility between its educational institutions and our members.”
Languages Canada will conduct a trade mission to Mexico later this fall from September 25 to 27, 2017. Languages Canada and its member programs will be present in Cancún to meet and develop partnerships with key educational agencies from Mexico. This mission is made possible thanks to the support of the Government of Canada’s Global Opportunities for Associations program.
About EDUCAFIN
EDUCAFIN is the Institute of Financing and Information for Education, a decentralized government agency of the State of Guanajuato that administers education funding and programs on behalf of the Ministry of Education of Guanajuato.
About Languages Canada
Languages Canada is Canada’s national language education association representing more than 210 private and public sector members offering accredited English and French programs. Membership is limited to programs that meet and who are committed to upholding the rigorous standards of the association. Languages Canada is recognized by various levels of government in Canada as well as internationally.
