TUNIS, Representatives of the world’s French-speaking countries gathered in Tunisia on Saturday for talks focused on economic cooperation at the 18th summit of the International Organisation of Francophonie (OIF) .
Tunisia Saturday took over the presidency of the OIF for the next two years. The torch was passed on in Djerba by current chair Armenia, represented by Premier Nikol Pashinyan.
An announcement of the host country of the 19th summit is expected during the present summit whose works are placed under the motto: “Connectivity in Diversity – the Digital, Vector of Development and Solidarity in the French-speaking World.”
The two-day event started Saturday with attendance of over 80 delegations and 31 heads of state and government, including French President Emmanuel Macron and Canada’s Justin Trudeau.
First day proceedings saw the presence of foreign ministers, Francophonie ministers, ambassadors and representatives of international and regional organisations and non-French-speaking countries, such as Egypt, Moldova, the UAE and Serbia.
The current summit, held in the presence of local and international media, was postponed twice due to the outbreak of COVID-19.
In his opening speech, President Kais Saïed said Tunisia managed to live up to its commitment to play host to the Francophonie Summit, driven by a strong will and with the support of several partners and friends, notwithstanding the difficult context in the country and efforts to cancel the event in Tunisia.
Topping the agenda are opportunities to improve technology transfer and build capacities in related fields as a lever for development, co-existence and solidarity in the Francophone area. This is in accordance with the content of the Francophone Digital Strategy (2022/2026) adopted in 2021 during Tunisia’s chairmanship of the Francophone Digital Commission.
A two-day business forum will launch Sunday; it will see the participation of nearly 600 business operators.
The current OIF Secretary-General is expected to be re-elected at the helm of the organisation for a new four-year term as she is the only candidate.
The International Organisation of La Francophonie is an inter-governmental organisation which brings together 88 member states. Headquartered in Paris, the organisation seeks to promote the French language, cultural and linguistic diversity, peace, democracy, human rights and support for education.
Tunisia was one of the founders of the organisation in 1970 along with Senegal, Nigeria and Cambodia. The Francophonie Summit has been held every two years since 1986.
Source: Emirates News Agency
