Vietnam attaches importance to Francophonie
(VOV) - Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan has praised the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF) for its exerted efforts in protecting the interests of its member countries and addressing global issues.
Doan made the remark while meeting with OIF Secretary General Abdou Diouf on the sidelines of the 14th Francophonie Summit in Kinshasa, Congo, on October 12 (local time).
She expressed hope that the organisation will continue to introduce suitable policies for its member countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including Vietnam.
For his part, Abdou Diouf highly valued Vietnam’s increasing role in the world, especially in popularising French within the country and the Asia-Pacific region, including non-Francophonie members.
In the presence of the two leaders, Vietnam and the OIF signed an agreement worth 2.4 million euros to teach French to 1,500 Vietnamese officials and diplomats over four years, starting in 2013.
Signatories to the document were Vietnamese Foreign Minister Assistant Nguyen Ngoc Son and OIF Executive Director Clement Duhaim.
France, Luxembourg, Belgium’s French-speaking community, and the OIF have committed 75 percent of the project, and the remainder comes from Vietnam.
French is given a priority in Vietnam as it has been taught at schools and universities across the country. Vietnam hopes that alongside promoting the learning and teaching of French, the country will develop a contingent of human resources who can help strengthen cooperation in various areas between Vietnam and other countries within the Francophonie community.
Vice President Doan is joining the heads of State and Government of the 75 French-speaking countries at the October 13-14 summit in Congo.