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The Francophone Embassies in Ghana cordially invite you to the opening ceremony of the 2020 Francophonie Festival to be held at Alliance Française of Accra on Saturday 14th of March, in the presence of H.E Shirley BOTCHWEY, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Mr. Saidou Alpha KANE, Director of the West African Regional Office of the International Organisation of Francophonie (IOF), as well as the Francophone Ambassadors in Ghana.
The International Day of la Francophonie is celebrated on the 20th of March every year all over the world. However, 2020 is a special year as it marks the 50th anniversary of Francophonie. The event has been certified by the OIF in the framework of that anniversary, along with many events in the world.
This year, the week will be opened by a Beninese music band, the Bénin International Musical – BIM. A musical project initiated by Radio France, the French radio public network, it aims at raising awareness about Beninese music and valorising the voodoo culture. After a tour in North America with, notably, a show in the internationally renowned Carnegie Hall in New York, BIM has chosen Accra to start its African tour.
As every year, the Francophone Embassies in Ghana together with Alliance Française organise various events during this entire week. Francophonie, with its cultural and linguistic diversity, will be celebrated in a joyful atmosphere: concert, film screenings, job application workshops, competition in French, meet-up with an author, and children’s performance.
Ghana has, since 2006, had the status of associate member within the IOF. The Francophone community in Ghana commends the tremendous efforts of the country to improve regional integration through the development of the French language. That engagement has been put on paper through the
signature of the linguistic Pact between Ghana and the IOF on May 15th, 2018. The latter counts, among its priorities, the reinforcement of the status of French in the educational system, the media and public area, with the aim of becoming a permanent member of the IOF.
The Francophonie Festival in Ghana therefore represents a unique opportunity to meet francophone persons and develop partnerships with the francophone communities. Out of the 88-member states of the IOF, 22 of them have a diplomatic representation in Ghana. These are Belgium, Benin, Burkina Faso, Canada, Czech Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, France, Gabon, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Lebanon, Mali, Mexico, Morocco, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Switzerland, and Togo.
The term “Francophonie” refers to all the states and governments worldwide who share the French language. The International Organization of La Francophonie represents one of the biggest linguistic zones in the world. Its mission is to embody the active solidarity among its 88-member states
and governments (54 full members, 7 associates and 27 observers), which together represent over onethird of the United Nations’ member states and account for a population of over 890 million people, including 300 million French speakers.
IOF organises political activities alongside the four main objectives which it has been assigned:
To promote the French language, cultural and linguistic diversity,
To promote peace, democracy and human rights
To support education, training, higher education institutions and research
To foster cooperation in favour of sustainable development.
The organisation has its headquarters in Paris, France, with regional offices all over the world, including
the West African Regional Office (BRAO) in Lomé, Togo.
15 facts about Francophonie and French language
1. There are an estimated 300 million French speakers worldwide, among them 235 million with a daily use, 59% living in Africa.
2. The intergovernmental organisation of French-speaking nations started 50 years ago, on March 20th, 1970 with the creation in Niamey (Niger), of the Agency of Cultural and Technical Cooperation. That organisation adopted a new Charter of Francophonie in 2005 and was renamed the International Organisation of La Francophonie (IOF) as it is still known today.
3. Overall the IOF member countries, 60% of the population is under 35 years old, which represents 620 million people.
4. The IOF has 88 states and governments (including 54 full members, 7 associates and 27 observers) across the five continents.
5. French is the 2nd most studied foreign language in the world, after English.
6. French is either the official language, or one of the official languages in 32 of the IOF’s member states, governments or observers.
7. The 88 member countries of the IOF represent 16% of the world population.
8. TV5 MONDE is broadcasted in 198 countries. The multilateral French language television channel, has the 3rd largest international television network. TV5MONDE broadcasts French productions 24 hours a day to almost 364 million homes and 120 million cellphones.
9. French is the 4th most widely used language on the Web with 5% of Internet pages, after English, German and Spanish.
10. French is the 5th most widely spoken language in the world after Chinese, English, Spanish and Arabic.
11. Out of the 16 countries in West Africa, 12 are members of the IOF, among which 8 have French as an official language.
12. The French-speaking zone accounts for 20% of world trade in goods
13. French being both a working language and an official language of the United Nations, the European Union, UNESCO, NATO, the International Olympic Committee, the International Red Cross and international courts, it is a truly diplomatic language.
14. The Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF) which is the academic agency of IOF federates 990 establishments for further education and research in 118 countries. The University of Development Studies is a member.
15. According to the ODSEF1, Africans will represent more than 70% of French-speaking people in 2050.
