In a bid to foster and promote stronger cultural diversity and growth between France and Nigeria, this year’s International Day of Francophonie, organised by Alliance Francaise in partnership with the consulates general of France and Switzerland as well as the Embassy of Canada in Nigeria marked the auspicious day with movie screenings and an award ceremony.
Environmental conflicts have emerged as key issues challenging local, regional, national and global security. Environmental crisis and problems throughout the world are widespread and increasing rapidly.
In a bid to address these concerns, this year’s International Day of Francophonie, also centrally explored major environmental challenges, such as climate, biodiversity and resource-related conflicts.
Speaking during the event in Lagos, Marc Brébant, Directeur, Alliance française de Lagos, said Journee De La Francophonie is celebrated in Lagos this year with movie screenings and awarding the best French students of secondary schools in Lagos.
Brébant said the competition involved 15 secondary schools in Lagos and 12 winners emerged overall.
He said the theme this year was chosen by the members of the Group of Francophone Ambassadors (GAF) and has helped consolidate the cultural programming of the Francophonie month in Lagos, Abuja, and in the nine other cities where there is an Alliance Française operating.
According to him, each year, a theme intended to convey a message about the French language and ten words illustrating it, is chosen by Francophone partners (France, Belgium, Quebec, Switzerland, and the International Organization of La Francophonie) for an initiative called “Tell me ten words.” The 2025 edition of this initiative has the theme, “Tell me ten words for the planet.”
He said the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF) and the International Day of Francophonie celebrated every year on March 20 aims to showcase French language, solidarity, cooperation and the diversity of member states.
According to Brébant, the OIF’s mission is to promote the language as well as cultural and linguistic diversity, peace, democracy, human rights, education, training, higher education, research and economic cooperation for sustainable development.
He said in Nigeria, French is the first foreign language taught at secondary school level with about 15,000 French teachers, 10 Alliances Françaises, a French Institute and two French high schools.
Laurent Favier, the Consul General of France based in Lagos who spoke on the theme of the event said, “I love my planet. But this is a general concern. And if we have all our strength collectively, we can do more to defend and to protect our planet.
“So the idea is to innovate, try to find solutions, better adaptive solutions to fight against climate change.”
Favier said the mission of the International Organisation of Francophonie, (OIF), is to promote the French language and the cultural diversity in its different languages.
“The second objective is to promote peace and human rights all around the world and to support education. And the last is to develop economic cooperation, but in a sustainable development way. So it means that climate is included, the protection of the environment is included, etc.”
As part of the celebration, two films were shown at Alliance Francaise Lagos, the first is a screening of Karnaval, a Canadian film directed by Henri Pardo that won the Audience Award at the Toronto International Film Festival. At 5:30pm, The Crusade by Louis Garrel (2021) was shown. This French film was featured in the Cinema for the Climate selection at the Cannes Film Festival.
On Saturday, March 15, Alliance Francaise Lagos hosted Mona de Pracontal for the first time, winner of the Baudelaire Prize for her translation of Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
On the occasion of her visit to the media library of the Alliance Française de Lagos, she presented the French translation of The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma in a dual French and Nigerian voice, in front of an audience composed of Nigerian writers, translators and publishers.
Finally, the French Bazaar will close the Francophonie month on Saturday, March 22, with a karaoke box of Francophone songs, Nigerian culinary tastings and a DJ set of English and French music.
The event was held in partnership with Nestle and Nestle Pure life.
