20th anniversary of Francophone Summit marked in Hanoi

In his remarks, Deputy Foreign Minister Ha Kim Ngoc applauded the summit’s success and Vietnam’s contributions to the International Organisation of Francophonie (OIF).

"The 7th Francophone Summit in Vietnam was an ideal opportunity for Vietnam to introduce its renewal process and strong development and integration. It contributed to boosting cooperation between Vietnam and other countries in the French speaking community. The summit revitalized the beautiful values of the French language that has been preserved by many generations of the Vietnamese people," he said.

With 84 member states and governments over the past two decades, the organization has accounted for 20% of the global trade and 13% of the world’ GDP and has made remarkable contribution to the fulfillment of the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and dealing with global and regional issues, such as poverty, education and healthcare, people’s standard of living, environment protection, gender equality and childcare, Ngoc noted.

Belgian Ambassador to Vietnam Jehane Roccas said, "The 7th Francophone Summit was a success of Vietnam’s diplomacy, marking Vietnam’s openness towards multilateralism. The summit has contributed to improving IOF’s institution by electing its first ever Secretary General and passing the organization’s Charter. We’d like to reiterate that Vietnam is among the countries with the highest numbers of French speaking people, reflecting its contribution to the French speaking communities worldwide."

The Summit was first held in Hanoi in 1997. Themed “Enhancing cooperation and solidarity of the French speaking community for peace and socio-economic development”, the event released the Hanoi Declaration, emphasizing the inseparable connection between peace and development, and between economic growth, social advancement and sustainable development.