Quebec Government Offices

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The Quebec Government Office at 59 Pall Mall in London, England

The Quebec Government Offices (French: Délégations générales du Québec) are the Government of Quebec's official representations outside of Canada. They are overseen by Quebec's Ministry of International Relations.

The network of 35 offices in 20 countries consists of 9 general delegations, 5 delegations, 15 government bureaux, 6 trade offices. There are also 2 representatives at the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie and UNESCO.

History[edit]

Quebec had agents-general in London, Paris, and Brussels prior to 1936, when legislation was passed by the government of Maurice Duplessis closing all Quebec government offices abroad. The government of Adélard Godbout repealed the legislation and opened an office in New York City in 1940. When Duplessis returned to power in 1944, his government retained the New York City office and its agent-general but opened no others.[citation needed]

In the early 1960s, the government of Jean Lesage began to open additional offices abroad in Paris (1961), London (1962), Rome and Milan (1965). Subsequent governments opened offices in Chicago (1969), Boston, Lafayette, Dallas and Los Angeles (1970), Munich and Berlin (1971), Brussels (1972), Atlanta (1977), Washington, DC (1978), Mexico City and Tokyo (1980), Beijing and Santiago (1998), Shanghai and Barcelona (1999), Mumbai (2007), São Paulo (2008) and Moscow (2012).[1] A UQAM scholar in 1984 described the offices as "mini-embassies" for Quebec and part of the Quiet Revolution.[2]

In 1971, the title of agent-general was officially changed to delegate-general, although the previous title is still often used, particularly for the government's representative to London.[citation needed]

As of 2024, the Government of Quebec is represented by 35 offices in 20 countries and has delegates-general (agents-general), delegates, bureaux, and trade offices. Québec also has a delegate for the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie and Multilateral Affairs and a representative to UNESCO, both based in Paris.[3] Quebec, like other Canadian provinces, also maintains representatives in some Canadian embassies and consulates general.

List of Quebec Government Offices[edit]

General Delegation of Quebec in Mexico City
General Delegation of Quebec in Paris

Quebec Government Offices fall into several types. General Delegations are deemed most important, and handle affairs of economy, education, culture, immigration, and public affairs. Delegations are similar, but do not deal with immigration issues. Bureaus handle a small number of issues. Trade Offices deal with trade affairs.[3]

City Country Type of Office
Brussels Belgium General Delegation
Dakar Senegal General Delegation
London United Kingdom General Delegation
Los Angeles United States General Delegation
Mexico City Mexico General Delegation
Munich Germany General Delegation
New York City United States General Delegation
Paris France General Delegation
Tokyo Japan General Delegation
Atlanta United States Delegation
Boston United States Delegation
Chicago United States Delegation
Houston United States Delegation
Rome Italy Delegation
Abidjan Ivory Coast Bureau
Barcelona Spain Bureau
Beijing China Bureau
Bogotá Colombia Bureau
Havana Cuba Bureau
Hong Kong China Bureau
Miami United States Bureau
Mumbai India Bureau
Rabat Morocco Bureau
São Paulo Brazil Bureau
Seoul South Korea Bureau
Shanghai China Bureau
Singapore Singapore Bureau
Tel Aviv Israel Bureau
Washington United States Bureau
Berlin Germany Trade Office
Milan Italy Trade Office
Philadelphia United States Trade Office
Qingdao China Trade Office
Shenzhen China Trade Office
Silicon Valley United States Trade Office

References[edit]

  1. ^ Reuchamps, Min (December 17, 2014). Minority Nations in Multinational Federations: A comparative study of Quebec and Wallonia. ISBN 9781317634720.
  2. ^ Sanguin, A.-L. (1984). "The Quebec Question and the Political Geography of Canada". GeoJournal. 8 (2): 99–107. doi:10.1007/BF00231488. JSTOR 41143255.
  3. ^ a b "Québec government offices abroad". Government of Quebec. Retrieved March 12, 2024.

External links[edit]