A History of Francophonie

The term "francophonie" appeared at the end of the 19th century - under the pen of French geographer Onesime Reclus - to describe all peoples and countries using French. It acquired its common usage a few decades later, when French-speaking people became aware of a shared linguistic heritage favourable to exchange and mutual enrichment. Literary men and women were at the origin of the movement, which was only natural for an undertaking involving the use of language. As early as 1926, writers took the lead. They set up the Association des écrivains de langue français, known as Adelf ('Association of French-language Writers'). Journalists followed in 1950 with the Union internationale des journalistes et de la presse de langue française ('International Union of French-language Journalists and Press') - now known as the Union internationale de la presse Francophone, or UPF ('International Francophone Press Union'). In 1955, an association of French-speaking public radio broadcasters was set up by Radio France, Radio Suisse Romande, Radio Canada and Radio Belge Francophone. With its growing audience, it now offers programs broadcast simultaneously on the airwaves of member radio stations, helping to strengthen the francophone movement worldwide. In 1960, the first francophone inter-governmental institution was born - the Conference of Ministers of Education (Confemen), initially bringing together 15 countries. It now meets every two years to outline guidelines for education and training for development. A year later, universities got involved by setting up the Association des universités partiellement ou entièrement de langue française ('Association of Partly or Entirely French-language Universities'). In 1999, this became the Agence universities de la Francophonie, known as AUF ('Francophone Universities Agency'). In 1967, the movement extended to lawmakers who launched their own international group which became the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF) in 1997. Under the Francophonie Charter, the Fra ncophone Parliamentary Assembly is the consultative assembly of francophone institutional arrangements. In 1969, a second permanent ministerial conference emerged with the Conference of Ministers of Youth and Sports (Conféjes). ADVENT OF FRANCOPHONE COOPERATION 'In the rubble of colonialism, we found this wonderful tool, the French language," the poet Léopold Sédar Senghor, a former president of Senegal, used to say. This reflected the philosophy of the founding fathers of Francophonie - Senghor and his counterparts Habib Bourguiba from Tunisia, Hamani Diori from Niger and Prince Norodom Sihanouk from Cambodia - to use French as a means of serving solidarity, development and rapprochement between peoples through dialogue between civilisations. That's why representatives of 21 states and governments signed the convention creating the Agence de coopération culturelle at technique (ACCT) in Niamey (Niger) on 20 March, 1970. The 'Cultural and Technical Cooperation Agency' was an inter-governmental body found ed on the sharing of French as a common language. It was responsible for promoting and publicising the cultures of its members, and increasing cultural and technical cooperation between them. The ACCT evolved into the Agence intergouvernementale de la Francophonie in 1988 and the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) in 2005. COOPERATION IN CULTURE AND EDUCATION As a partner since the early 1970s of Fespaco - the Pan-African Film and Television Festival of Ougadougou (Burkina Faso) - the Agency created an Images Fund in 1988 which helped with the creation of thousands of films and television programs. In 1986, the first Centre de lecture et animation culturelle, known as Clac, was inaugurated. These "Cultural Reading and Animation Centres' - now numbering more than 300 across some 20 countries - offer people in rural areas and disadvantaged neighbourhoods access to books and culture. In 1993, the Marché des arts du spectacle africain (MASA) was held in Abidjan (Cote d'Ivoire) as the first 'African Performing Arts Market.' At the same time, a support program was launched for artists and their work - dedicated to the creation of living and visual arts. For French-language novels, the Agency created a new annual literary prize in 2001 - the Prix des cinq continents de la Francophonie ('Five Francophone Continents Prize'). The jury has included great names in francophone literature such as Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clésio (France-Mauritius), René de Obaldia (France), Venus Khoury Ghatta (Lebanon) and Lionel Trouillot (Haiti). Francophone radio and television networks emerged in the 1970s and 1980s, starting with the Conseil international des radios télévisions d'expression française, known as CIRTEF ('International Council of French-speaking Radio and Television Broadcasters'). Set up in 1978, CIRTEF now comprises 44 broadcasters using French, either partly or entirely. Cooperation is through program exchanges, co-productions and professional training. Under an initiative of Paris Mayor Jacques Chi rac in 1979, the mayors of partly or entirely French-speaking capitals and metropolises created the Association internationales des maires francophones, or AIMF ('International Association of Francophone Mayors'). It became a Francophonie partner in 1995. In 1984, five public broadcasters - TF1, Antenne 2 and FR3 in France, RTBF in Belgium and TSR in Switzerland - formed the French-language television channel TV5. The Quebec Public Television Consortium joined in 1986. TV5 Afrique and TV5 Amérique Latine were formed in 1992 followed by TV5 Asie in 1996, and ultimately - for the United States and the Middle East - TV5 Etats-Unis and TV5 Moyen-Orient in 1998. Known as TV5 Monde since 2001, the network now has seven television channels in addition to TV5 Quebec-Canada. Viewed in more than 300 million homes around the world, TV5 now spreads the French language across a wide range of expressions and cultures. NEW POLITICAL DIMENSION In 1986, French President François Mitterrand hosted the first Francophonie Sum mit of Heads of State and Government in Versailles (France). Forty-two states and governments took part under four priority areas of multilateral cooperation - development, cultural and communication industries, language industries, technological development, and research and scientific information. Since 1986, Francophonie Summits have been held in 1987 in Quebec City (Canada), 1989 in Dakar (Senegal), 1991 in Paris (France) after originally being planned for the Democratic Republic of Congo, 1993 in Grand-Baie (Mauritius), 1995 in Cotonou (Benin), 1997 in Hanoi (Viet Nam), 1999 in Moncton (Canada), 2002 in Beirut (Lebanon), 2004 in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), 2006 in Bucharest (Romania), 2008 in Quebec City (Canada), 2010 in Montreux (Switzerland) after originally being scheduled for Madagascar, 2012 in Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of Congo), 2014 in Dakar (Senegal), 2016 in Antananarivo (Madagascar), 2018 in Yerevan (Armenia), 2022 in Djerba (Tunisia) and 2024 in Villers-Cotterêts and Paris (France). Th ese top-level political consultations gradually strengthened Francophonie's role on the international stage while expanding its scope and improving its structure and operations. To be more in line with the political flavor it had acquired, the Cotonou Summit in Benin in 1995 decided to create the position of Secretary General as a keystone of the institutional arrangement. The Hanoi Summit in Viet Nam in 1997 elected the first - His Excellency Boutros Boutros-Ghali, former Secretary-General of the United Nations, who held the position until 2002. The Hanoi Summit also adopted the Francophonie Charter. The Beirut Summit in Lebanon in 2002 elected His Excellency Abdou Diouf, former President of Senegal, as the second Secretary General. He encouraged a new dynamic to the Organization in the areas political action and development cooperation. The Francophonie Ministerial Conference in Antananarivo in Madagascar in 2005 adopted a new charter that rationalised the structure and operations under a new name - the O rganisation international de la Francophonie (OIF). The Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, former Governor General of Canada, became the next Secretary General at the Dakar Summit in Senegal in 2014. She was followed by Her Excellency Louise Mushikiwabo, former Rwandan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and the East African Community, at the Yerevan Summit in Armenia in 2018. Her four-year mandate was extended at the Djerba Summit in Tunisia in 2022. Over the course of the Summits, culture and education - the original areas of francophone cooperation - were joined by politics (peace, democracy and human rights), sustainable development, economics and digital technology. The Institut de la Francophonie pour le développement durable (IFDD) was founded in Quebec City in 1988 as an institute for sustainable development. In 2015, an education and training institute - the Institut de la Francophonie pour l'éducation et la formation (IFEF) - was set up in Dakar. In the key sector of promoting democracy, the OI F sent its first election observers to Romania during presidential and legislative elections in 1992. Electoral assistance offered in response to requests of the countries concerned is not limited to observing polls. It includes institutional and legal support, training electoral staff, and technical and material aid. In Mali in 2000, the Bamako Declaration was adopted as the first Francophonie document in the field of democracy, rights and freedoms - with binding powers on members who don't respect common democratic values. AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE TO THE PEOPLE With the first Francophonie Games in 1989, the institution took on a popular dimension catering to youth. Morocco welcomed 1,700 young people from 31 French-speaking countries for cultural and sports competitions. The Games have since been held in France (1994), Madagascar (1997), Quebec province in Canada (2001), Niger (2005), Lebanon (2009), France (2013) and Cote d'Ivoire (2017). In 1993, a conference of international non-governmental organisation s accredited to Francophonie authorities involved civil society in developing, implementing and evaluating multilateral cooperation. The conference meets every two years at the invitation of the Secretary General. By 2019, a total of 127 international non-governmental organizations and other civil society groups had been accredited. The first Francophone Women's Conference in Luxembourg in 2000 reflected a commitment to promote gender equality among Francophonie members and programs. Two decades later, the OIF launched its flagship program - La Francophonie avec Elles - to support the economic empowerment of women and girls. CHALLENGES TO OVERCOME A long way has been traveled from the first meetings of francophone writers at the dawn of the last century to the spread of their work worldwide in libraries set up by the OIF. This is thanks to the goodwill of all those who have kept - and continue to keep - the French language alive and defend Francophonie values. But new challenges await the OIF and its stat es and governments over the next 50 years. Estimates show there could be between 500 and 800 million francophones worldwide by 2070 - mainly young people in Africa. This is both a great hope and a huge challenge for the entire francophone movement - a hope because the future of the French language has never presented itself under better auspices, and a challenge because prospects must be offered to these young people. This priority is, of course, on the Secretary-General's agenda - alongside other key issues like strengthening Francophonie influence, consolidating democracy, addressing climate change, reinforcing economic exchanges, supporting digital transformation and promoting gender equality. Following the most recent summit in France in 2024, the OIF comprised 93 states and governments - 56 full members, 5 associate members and 32 observers - up from the previous 88. During the summit, heads of state and government from the full members approved five new observers - Angola, Chile, French Polynesia, the Canadian province of Nova Scotia and the German state of Saarland. They also approved the upgrading of Cyprus and Ghana from associate to full-member status. In addition, they nominated Cambodia to host the Twentieth Francophone Summit in 2026. Source: Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, Paris Source: Agence Kampuchea Presse