Initially the Fédération des Francophones oversaw the francophone cultural brief in the province of British Columbia. The Fédération set up a cultural committee within its Board. Committee members met to make their common vision a reality by establishing a professional and independent cultural and artistic sector of the Fédération des francophones de la C.-B.
The CCAFCB came into being on May 27, 1996, as a full-fledged organisation established to meet the growing need to support development of a thriving francophone cultural and artistic community. To achieve this, the first board of directors developed the CCAFCB’s primary mandate to make arts and culture more accessible to the francophone community. This involved several administrative procedures, such as hiring the first Managing Director (Daniel Thériault) in 1996 and the recruitment of members. The next year on June 7, 1997, the first AGM bringing together a dozen member organizations was held with the participation of Marie Woolridge, President of the organization from 1996 to 1999 and from 2000 to 2002.
A little over two decades later, the CCAFCB continues to play its role of representing francophone arts and culture and ensuring the development, promotion, and representativeness of the sector. The CCAFCB fulfills its mandate with the collaboration of its thirteen member organizations that also contribute to its numerous projects and initiatives.
Over the years, the CCAFCB has become a unique voice for the support and development of arts and culture, on a provincial and a national level. It has supported artists by providing them with training tailored to their needs to develop their expertise. The artists also have the opportunity to be listed in the arts directory that provides an excellent reference tool in the province’s francophone arts sector.
Today the CCAFCB has reinforced its ties with the artists. Interaction with the artists is focused on their professional development through initiatives such as the Art+ project.
