MONTREAL -- Family support organizations in Quebec are reporting that their funding is still not forthcoming this year, putting their services in jeopardy at a time of heightened need due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Government funding, usually provided in a first payment at the beginning of April, is behind schedule, which the Federation quebecoise des organismes communautaires Famille (FQOCF) and the Federation des associations de familles monoparentales et recomposees du Quebec (FAFMRQ) are growing concerned about.
FAFMRQ executive director Sylvie Levesque detailed an administrative maze involving the Ministry of Families and the Treasury Board, which is keeping no less than 280 community organizations on their toes.
"We have other things to do than wait for funding. The groups are there to respond to the needs of families, not to worry all the time about when the money will come in," said Levesque.
The COVID-19 crisis has been particularly hard on families, who were sometimes cut off from their support network while dealing with school and daycare closures.
The FAFMRQ and its 40 or so members denounce a lack of predictability that could soon compromise their support services.
The FQOCF is of the same opinion, pointing out that the financial situation of organizations is already precarious.
"There is, therefore, an urgent need to act in order to ensure the maintenance of the social safety net around thousands of families who benefit from the services of the 280 FBOs in all regions of Quebec," said president Sylvianne Poiriera in a statement.
The federation says it is in contact with the Ministry of Family Affairs to receive the amounts due as soon as possible.
Minister Mathieu Lacombe's office said that work is underway to improve the funding with an investment of $85 million over five years.
"Last November, the Minister of Family Affairs announced a complete review of the program that supports community organizations," said Lacombe's press secretary.
In an email to The Canadian Press, Antoine de la Durantaye said that "everything should be completed in the next few weeks," without providing a more precise timetable for the expected payments.
While the delays are a result of a desire to increase their funding, an advance should have been made in the meantime, said Levesque.
"It doesn't matter how many cheques we receive, the important thing is to receive them," she said, noting that some organizations are now forced to apply for lines of credit.
This is the case for the Cote-des-Neiges Parents' Association in Montreal.
"After this paycheck, that's it, I won't have any money left in the account," said director Awatef Simou. "We can't work for free. There are employees with families, there is rent to pay."
In a telephone interview Sunday, Simou said she was still in the dark about the next check -- her only source of recurring funding.
"We can't afford the delay in funding," she said. "We just can't. Is it a matter of signing documents? Is it bureaucracy? We don't know what's going on."
According to Levesque, the funds should materialize by mid-June, or even the end of the month, with at least two and a half months of delay.
"They are offering us a bonus, thank you, that's good, but at least ensure the basic payments!" said Simou.
The announced increase is expected to raise annual funding for community family support organizations to $130,000, compared to the current average of $80,000 to $90,000, according to FAFMRQ figures.
At the time of the announcement, last fall, Minister Lacombe said he was aligning himself with the first recommendations of the Laurent Commission on Children's Rights and Youth Protection.
The Commission called for a minimum annual funding of $200,000, a recommendation that is also found in its final report, tabled this month.
-- this report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on May 23, 2021.
