Acadian region of southwest Nova submits bid to host Congrès mondial acadien
Municipalities of Clare and Argyle looking to jointly host event in 2024
After months of planning, consulting and rallying in the region, the CMA 2024 bid committee announced last week that the bid document for co-hosting the seventh Congrès mondial acadien (CMA) in the municipalities of Clare and Argyle was complete.
The final document was sent to the Société Nationale de l’Acadie (SNA) by the Jan. 15 deadline.
The SNA will spend the next few months evaluating Clare and Argyle’s bid. The location of the host region for the 2024 CMA will be formally announced by the SNA in this spring. If Clare and Argyle’s bid is accepted, it will mark the first time a local Nova Scotia community has hosted the CMA.
The 2004 CMA was held in Nova Scotia, but it was the province acting as host rather than a the Congrès mondial acadien to this list of accomplishments.”
The proposed theme “Venez vivre votre Acadie” (Come live your Acadie), is a nod to the centuries-long Acadian roots of the community and the recognition that the worldwide Acadian identity is united in its diversity. The bid committee proposes the event be held over nine days from Aug. 10 to Aug. 18, 2024. It recommends a budget of $8.5 million to be financed by various levels of government, the private sector, community contributions and self-generated revenues.
Since announcing their plan to bid on hosting the event, the municipalities of Clare and Argyle sought the services of Martin Theberge Consultant to help prepare the bid document. With the assistance of Théberge, the bid committee held two public consultations to inform and engage with members of the community regarding the possibility of hosting the CMA in the region.
The social media campaign “J’appuie #CLARGYLE CMA 2024” was launched in November 2018 to help promote the host- ing bid. The hashtag #CLARGYLE was introduced to emphasize the strong ties shared by the two municipalities. The Facebook and Instagram pages have served as useful tools for mobilizing the Acadian community within the region and beyond.
A letter-writing campaign amassed more than 400 letters of support from individuals, businesses, organizations and government institutions at the municipal, provincial and federal levels. Students from the Conseil scolaire acadien provincial (CSAP) also took part in the letter-writing campaign with great enthusiasm.
“We have spent months consulting with residents, organizations and the business community,” said Théberge. “The bid committee has received confirmation that the people of the Acadian region of southwest Nova Scotia support our bid to bring home the CMA in 2024.”