Saskatchewan's provincial government has moved control of Francophone Affairs from Executive Council to the Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport.

A government spokesperson said Wednesday in an email that the mandate and budget will not be changed at all due to the move.

Some french leaders in the community said they are worried about the change.

"Our first impression was it's a shock," Denis Simard, president of the Assemblée communautaire fransaskoise (ACF), said in an interview originally conducted in French. The Assemblée communautaire fransaskoise is an advocacy group in the province.

"We feel like it's a step backwards."

Simard said he hoped to meet soon with the relevant government officials to ensure that communication between the two parties stays the same.

Former ACF president Françoise Sigur-Cloutier said she thinks the change will do a disservice to the Fransaskois community.

"I think it's pretty serious," she said.

"If we want Francophone affairs to develop and not lose anything in their capacity, the department has to at least stay where it was. We are in the process of losing a lot."

Sigur-Cloutier also said she fears the department of Francophone affairs will go the way of the old Francophone Community Infrastructure Fund.

The fund was created in 2011 and existed for four years. Then, Sigur-Cloutier said, it was moved to the parks ministry and changed names, which then gave the government no obligation to spend the $100,000 in French communities.

"We practically don't have access to that money anymore," she said.