YEREVAN, OCTOBER 10, ARMENPRESS. Armenian foreign minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan has recapped the 35th Ministerial Conference of the International Organization of La Francophonie, which was taking place in Yerevan, Armenia for the past two days.

“After these two days full of exchanges I would like to thank you for active participation and contribution in our discussions,” the minister said, addressing Secretary General Michaelle Jean, ambassadors and delegates.

“First of all I would like to draw your attention on the significance of the texts ratified by us, first of all the draft Yerevan declaration about the Living Together slogan, as well as the Francophone’s call on Living Together,” he said.

The full transcript of the speech is available in Armenian and French.

Ministers of foreign affairs of La Francophonie member states participated in the conference.

Yerevan is hosting the XVII International Organisation of La Francophonie summit in 2018.

The events will take place October 7-12, with the summit scheduled for the final two days.  

A gala concert will take place October 11 in the Republic Square of Yerevan.

Armenia is a member of the organization since 2008.

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 organizes 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.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan