THE 17TH SUMMIT OF FRANCOPHONIE TO BE HELD IN ARMENIA AROUND PEACE & SOLIDARITY

USPA NEWS - The 17th Francophonie Summit will be held in Yerevan (Armenia), on October 11 and 12, 2018, around the theme: "Living together in solidarity, sharing humanist values and respect for diversity: Source of peace and Prosperity for the Francophone Space ". The International Organisation of La Francophonie represents one of the biggest linguistic zones in the world. Its members share more than just a common language. They also share the humanist values promoted by the French language. The French language and its humanist values represent the two cornerstones on which the International Organisation of La Francophonie is based.

The 17th Francophonie Summit will be held in Yerevan (Armenia), on October 11 and 12, 2018, around the theme: "Living together in solidarity, sharing humanist values and respect for diversity: Source of peace and Prosperity for the Francophone Space ". The International Organisation of La Francophonie represents one of the biggest linguistic zones in the world. Its members share more than just a common language. They also share the humanist values promoted by the French language. The French language and its humanist values represent the two cornerstones on which the International Organisation of La Francophonie is based. The International Organisation of La Francophonie was created in 1970. Its mission is to embody the active solidarity between its 84 member states and governments (58 members and 26 observers), which together represent over one-third of the United Nations´ member states and account for a population of over 900 million people, including 274 million French speakers. IOF organises political activities and actions of multilateral cooperation that benefit French-speaking populations. Its actions respect cultural and linguistic diversity and serve to promote the French language, peace and sustainable development. IOF has concluded 33 cooperation agreements with international and regional organisations and has established permanent dialogue between the major international linguistic zones (the English, Portuguese, Spanish, and Arab-speaking zones). The IOF has its head office in Paris as well as four permanent representations in Addis Ababa (at the African Union and at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa), in Brussels (at the European Union), in New York and in Geneva (at the UN). It has three regional offices (West Africa ; Central Africa and Indian Ocean ; Asia-Pacific) located respectively in Lomé (Togo), Libreville (Gabon) and Hanoi (Vietnam) and two regional antennas in Bucharest (Romania) and in Port-au-Prince (Haiti). Alongside the IOF, the Parliamentary Assembly of La Francophonie and the four direct operators are responsible for implementing the programs decided at the Summits. The four direct operators are : the Academic Agency of La Francophonie, TV5Monde, the International Association of Francophone Mayors and The Senghor University of Alexandria.

58 MEMBER STATES AND GOVERNMENTS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Albania, Principality of Andorra, Armenia, Kingdom of Belgium, French Community of Belgium, Benin, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Canada-New-Brunswick, Canada-Quebec, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, , Cyprus, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, France, Gabon, Ghana, Greece, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Ivory Coast, Laos, Lebanon, Luxembourg, former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Madagascar, Mali, Morocco, Mauritius, Mauritania, Moldova, Monaco, Niger, New-Caledonia, Qatar, Romania, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Säo Tomé and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Switzerland, Togo, Tunisia, Vanuatu, Vietnam. 26 OBSERVERS--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Argentina, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada-Ontario, South Corea, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Mexico, Montenegro, Mozambique, Poland, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Thailand, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay. BENCHMARKS---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- French language “¢ 274 million French speakers worldwide There are an estimated 274 million French speakers worldwide. “¢ French is the 5th most widely spoken language on the planet French is the 5th most widely spoken language on the planet and the only one, together with English, to be spoken on all five continents. “¢ 3rd global business language French is the 2nd business language of the European Area and the 3rd global business language in the world “¢ 4th most widely used language on the Web French is the 4th most widely used language on the Web La Francophonie “¢ The IOF : 84 States and governments The International Organisation of La Francophonie (IOF) has 84 States and governments (including 26 observers) across the five continents. “¢ IOF´s community : 1,5 billion people The IOF´s 84 States and governments account for a population of 1,5 billion people, which represents 16% of the world´s population “¢ The IOF : over one-third of the UNO´s member states The International Organisation of La Francophonie´s 84 member states and governments represent over one-third of the United Nation´s member states. “¢ French is an official language in 32 member states French is either the official language, or one of the official languages in 32 of the IOF´s member states, governments or observers. “¢ The French-speaking zone accounts for 20% of world trade in goods French-speaking countries account for 20% of world trade in goods “¢ 900,000 French teachers worldwide There are an estimated 900,000 French teachers worldwide. “¢ 125 million people study French It is the medium of instruction for a little over 76 million people and close to 49 million are learning French as a foreign language “¢ 60% of French speakers are under 30 years old In most of the IOF member countries, 60% of the population is under 30 years old. “¢ 55% of French-speakers live in Africa Africa is the continent with the largest number of French speakers SOURCE : OIF