On 15 June, the Committee of Ministers of the Union for the Dutch Language – De Nederlandse Taalunie - took place for the second time this year. The Flemish Ministers of Education and Culture, Ben Weyts and Jan Jambon, and the Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science, Ingrid van Engelshoven, as well as General Secretary of Union for the Dutch Language, Kris Van De Poel, participated via a video call. For her, this was the first participation in the ministerial consultations since her appointment last March.
On the agenda was the approval of the Multi-annual Policy Plan 2020-2024. The plan, based on an earlier draft by former general secretary Hans Bennis, puts forward three substantive themes: accessibility of the language, creativity and the internationalisation of the Dutch language. Furthermore, the Taalunie will strongly focus on the promotion of reading and the further development of actions to strengthen the Dutch language courses in Flanders and the Netherlands.
The Taalunie is the Flemish-Dutch policy organisation that supports and stimulates the Dutch language both in the Low Countries, Suriname and beyond by means of an integrated language policy. The Committee, composed of the Ministers of Education and Culture of Flanders and the Netherlands, directs the policy. In September, the Language Union will celebrate its 40th anniversary.