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Member states of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie

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Map highlighting member states
  member (national)
  member (regional)
  associated member
  suspended member
  observer

This is a list of the member states of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie. These governments belong to an international organisation representing countries and regions where French is the first ("mother") or customary language, where a significant proportion of the population are francophones (French speakers) or where there is a notable affiliation with French culture.[1][2][3]

List of member, associate, observer states

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Member states

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Country Joined Language Notes
 Albania 1999 Albanian Brief French protectorate in Korçë between 1916 and 1920. Approximately 30% of young Albanians choose French as their first foreign language.[4] Albania is home to 300,000 French speakers, and it is the second foreign language of education after English.
 Andorra 2004 Catalan Formerly part of First French Empire. The President of France is also a Co-Prince of Andorra.
 Armenia 2012 Armenian See further: Armenia-France relations
 Belgium 1970 officially trilingual, French included French is the native language of about 39% of the population[5] 48% are non-native speakers of French.[6] Belgium's French community is also a member separately. See also: Languages of Belgium and Belgian French
* Wallonia French Community of Belgium[a] 1980 French as official language A community of Belgium with its two components Wallonia (excluding the German-speaking community) and Brussels-Capital Region (its French-speaking majority)
 Benin 1970 French Former French colony
 Bulgaria 1993 Bulgarian French is spoken as a foreign language by 9% of the Bulgarian people, and taught as a main foreign language in about 25% of primary schools. Furthermore, French is studied by 7.7% of high school students.[7][8]
 Burkina Faso 1970 French Former French colony. Membership suspended in 2022 due to a coup.
 Burundi 1970 officially trilingual, French Former Belgian UN-protectorate
 Cambodia 1993 Khmer Former French protectorate (as a part of former French Indochina)
 Cameroon 1991 officially bilingual, French included Over 90% of country was a French protectorate (1945–1959)
 Canada 1970 Officially bilingual, French included The provinces of Quebec and New Brunswick are participating governments; much of eastern Canada was part of the first French colonial empire. As of 2004, a government representative from Ontario also attends as part of the Canadian delegation, although Ontario is not yet a participating government in its own right.
*  New Brunswick[b] 1977 officially bilingual, French included Considered a "participating government", this province of Canada is officially bilingual English-French and home to the largest community of Acadians.
*  Quebec[b] 1971 French Considered a "participating government", this province of Canada has French as its official language and is home to 85% of Canada's native francophones.
 Cape Verde 1996 Portuguese French is spoken as a foreign language by ~11% of the population as of 2014
 Central African Republic 1973 officially bilingual, French included Former French colony. The Central African Republic was suspended for instances of la Francophonie at the 88th session of the CPF in March 2012.[9]
 Chad 1970 officially bilingual, French included Former French colony
 Comoros 1977 officially trilingual, French included Former French colony
 Congo-Brazzaville 1981 French Former French colony
 Congo-Kinshasa 1977 French Former Belgian colony. See also: Languages of the DRC
 Côte d'Ivoire 1970 French Former French colony. See also: Languages of Côte d'Ivoire
 Djibouti 1977 officially bilingual, French included Former French colony
 Dominica 1979 English French and then British colony; Antillean Creole, a French-based creole language, is spoken by 90% of the population.
 Egypt 1983 Arabic French sees use as foreign language in education and the country was a French colony for a short period from 1798 to 1801
 Equatorial Guinea 1989 officially trilingual, French included Country surrounded by French-speaking countries. Former Spanish colony
 France 1970 French Founder, origin of the French language
 Gabon 1970 French Former French colony
 Greece 2004 Greek French spoken as a foreign language by ~7% of the population as of 2014
 Guinea 1981 French Former French colony. Membership suspended in 2021 due to a coup.
 Guinea-Bissau 1979 Portuguese Country surrounded by French-speaking countries. Former Portuguese colony. Guinea-Bissau was suspended on 18 April 2012 following a coup d'état.[10]
 Haiti 1970 officially bilingual, French included Former French colony
 Laos 1991 Lao Former French colony (as a part of former French Indochina)
 Lebanon 1973 Arabic and French[c] Under a French mandate from 1920 to 1943
 Luxembourg 1970 Officially trilingual, French included
 North Macedonia 2001 Macedonian French spoken as a foreign language by ~11% of the population as of 2014
 Madagascar 1970–1977,
1989		 officially bilingual, French included Former French colony
 Mali 1970 French Former French colony. Mali's membership was suspended in March 2012 due to a coup,[11] and again in 2020.
 Mauritania 1980 Arabic Former French colony, French is an administrative language. Mauritania's membership was suspended on 26 August 2008, pending democratic elections, after a military coup d'état,[12] then again in April 2009.[13]
 Mauritius 1970 Creole is the mother tongue. French and English are also widely used Dutch, French, and then British colony; French is widely used in commerce and by the media.[citation needed] French is also a language of instruction in schools.[citation needed]
 Moldova 1996 Romanian French spoken as a foreign language by ~2% of the population as of 2014
 Monaco 1970 French Independent country enclaved in France
 Morocco 1981 Arabic and Berber Former French and Spanish protectorate
 Niger 1970 French Former French colony. Membership suspended due to a coup in 2023.
 Romania 1993 Romanian French is understood and spoken by 26% of the population.[6]
 Rwanda 1970 officially quadralingual, French included Former Belgian UN-protectorate. In 2009, became a member of the Commonwealth, but remains a member within Francophonie.
 Saint Lucia 1981 English Former French and British colony. Antillean Creole, a French-based creole language, is spoken by 90% of the population.
 São Tomé and Príncipe 1999 Portuguese French spoken as a foreign language by ~20% of the population as of 2014
 Senegal 1970 French Former French colony
 Seychelles 1976 officially trilingual, French included Former French colony (first empire), later British colony, French is commonly used
 Switzerland 1996 Officially quadrilingual, French included French is the native language of about 20% of all Swiss.
 Togo 1970 French Former French colony
 Tunisia 1970 Arabic Former French protectorate
 Vanuatu 1979 officially trilingual Former French and British condominium of New Hebrides
 Vietnam 1970[d] Vietnamese Former French protectorates and colony, former French associated state

Associate states

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Country Joined Language Notes
 Cyprus 2006 Greek, Turkish Cyprus was ruled by the French-origin Lusignan dynasty from 1192 until 1489. About 12% of the Cyprus population speaks and understands French.
 Ghana 2006 English All land borders with French-speaking countries (all former colonies of French West Africa) and trade partners. Study of French is being made compulsory at the basic educational level and certain subjects will be taught in both English and French. Became Associate Member in 2006.[15]
 Kosovo 2014 Albanian and Serbian Traditional diplomatic and commercial ties with France. French is taught as a third language in most secondary schools. See further: France-Kosovo relations
 New Caledonia 2016 French and New Caledonian languages Special collectivity of France. Former French colony (1853–1946) and overseas territory (1946–1999)
 Qatar 2012 Arabic Strong military ties with France. See further: France-Qatar relations
 Serbia 2006 Serbian Traditional diplomatic, military and cultural ties with France. French is widely taught as a second foreign language in schools. See further: France-Serbia relations
 United Arab Emirates 2010 Arabic Military and cultural ties with France See further: France-United Arab Emirates relations

Observer states

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Country Joined Language Notes
 Argentina 2016 Spanish and others

Argentina has a large French community. Today more than six million Argentines have some degree of French ancestry (up to 17% of the total population).[16]

 Austria 2004 German Strong ties with Belgium, a Francophone country located to the north of France. Roughly 11% of the population also speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 2010 Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian
 Chile 2024 Spanish Chile has a large French community. French is the second compulsory language in middle school.[17]
 Costa Rica 2014 Spanish French is the second compulsory language in middle school.
 Croatia 2004 Croatian Part of the Illyrian Provinces under Napoleon's French Empire. See further: Croatia-France relations
 Czechia 1999 Czech ~2% of the population speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
 Dominican Republic 2010 Spanish French colony from 1795 to 1808.
 Estonia 2010 Estonian ~1% of the population speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
 Gambia 2018 English Border with Senegal, a French-speaking country.
 Georgia 2004 Georgian ~0.4% of the population speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
 Hungary 2004 Hungarian
 Ireland 2018 English and Irish French is the second most common foreign language spoken at home in Ireland (after Polish), and most commonly spoken by those born in Ireland. [18]
 Latvia 2008 Latvian ~1% of the population speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
 Lithuania 1999 Lithuanian ~2% of the population speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
*  Louisiana[e] 2018 English U.S. state with a francophone minority. Once part of the first French colonial empire — now it is home to a strong influence of Cajun, Creole, and Haitian language and culture. Use of the French language in Louisiana is promoted through the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana, a state agency that is responsible for preserving the state's "French heritage".[19]
 Malta 2018 Maltese and English Formerly occupied by France.
 Mexico 2014 Spanish A large number of French immigrants arrived in Mexico since the 1830s and today number over six million French descendants.[20] Second Mexican Empire, a puppet state of the Second French Empire under Napoleon III.[21]
 Montenegro 2010 Montenegrin Part of the Illyrian Provinces under Napoleon's French Empire.
 Mozambique 2006 Portuguese Trading partner across the Mozambique Channel with French-speaking and the former French colony of Madagascar.
*  Ontario[b] 2016 English[f] A province of Canada whose area was once a part of the Pays d'en Haut region of New France and is home to a francophone minority, the Franco-Ontarians. Although French is an official language in the province's judiciary, legislature, and educational system — the province as a whole is not officially bilingual — with other French-language provincial services not offered province-wide. However, Ontario's French Language Services Act does require Ontario government departments to provide French-language services in areas with significant francophone populations and recognizes the French language as a "historic language of Ontario".
 Poland 1996 Polish Long-standing cultural and historic ties — Henry III of France was King of Poland from 1573 to 1574 and the Duchy of Warsaw was a client state allied with the First French Empire from 1807 to 1815. France was home to notable Polish émigrés — including Adam Mickiewicz, Frédéric Chopin, and Marie Skłodowska-Curie.
 Republic of Korea 2016 Korean The Joseon Dynasty was invaded twice by the Second French Empire during the 19th century. Furthermore, the Catholic population grew as a result of French Jesuit missionaries in the country. See further: France-South Korea relations
 Slovakia 2002 Slovak
 Slovenia 1999 Slovene Part of the Illyrian Provinces under Napoleon's French Empire
 Thailand 2008 Thai Thailand has a history of international relations with France for more than 300 years, since the Ayutthaya Kingdom of Thailand. See further: Thailand-France relations
 Ukraine 2006 Ukrainian
 Uruguay 2012 Spanish

Note:
  Participation suspended

Other candidates

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Some countries could also potentially join the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie on the basis of being part of the French colonial empire, including Algeria,[22][23][24] Syria, Pondicherry and Chandannagar regions of India.[g] In 2016, Saudi Arabia applied to join the organisation despite having no historical colonial ties with France.[25] However, the Saudis withdrew their bid in October 2018 due to pressure over their human rights record.[26] In 2021, German state of Saarland applied to join the organisation as observer because it was once a French protectorate from 1947 to 1956 — two years after dissolution of Nazi Germany in 1945.[h][27] In 2022, Brazil applied to join the organisation as observer because neighbouring with the French Guiana at the north and west — have historical site named Fort Coligny in Rio de Janeiro built by French naval officer Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon in 1555.[28]

Notes

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  1. ^ Belgian linguistic community
  2. ^ a b c Canadian provinces
  3. ^ French is the secondary language in Lebanon
  4. ^ Originally joined as the Republic of Vietnam in 1970. Its successor, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, re-joined the organisation in 1979.[14]
  5. ^ U.S. state
  6. ^ French is a regional administrative language in Ontario
  7. ^ Indian cities
  8. ^ German state

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Welcome to the International Organisation of La Francophonie's website". Archived from the original on 2014-04-01. Retrieved 2017-05-30.
  2. ^ Radio France International, 16 February 2006
  3. ^ "La France à l'heure de la francophonie culturelle " Saisir du français pour l'imprégner de sa singularité ! "". RFI. Retrieved 28 December 2014.
  4. ^ "Visit to Albania – Statements by Michel Barnier, Minister of Foreign Affairs". Embassy of France in the US. 7 September 2004. Archived from the original on 2004-10-12.
  5. ^ Ginsburgh, Victor, UCLouvain; Weber, Shlomo, Professor Economy and Director of the Center for Economic Studies of the Southern Methodist University (June 2006). "La dynamique des langues en Belgique". Regards économiques, Publication préparée par les économistes de l'Université catholique de Louvain (in French). 19 (Numéro 42): 282–9. doi:10.1159/000013462. PMID 10213829. Les enquêtes montrent que la Flandre est bien plus multilingue, ce qui est sans doute un fait bien connu, mais la différence est considérable : alors que 59 % et 53 % des Flamands connaissent le français ou l'anglais respectivement, seulement 19 % et 17 % des Wallons connaissent le néerlandais ou l'anglais. ... 95 pour cent des Bruxellois déclarent parler le français, alors que ce pourcentage tombe à 59 pour cent pour le néerlandais. Quant à l'anglais, il est connu par une proportion importante de la population à Bruxelles (41 pour cent). ... Le syndrome d'H (...) frappe la Wallonie, où à peine 19 et 17 pour cent de la population parlent respectivement le néerlandais et l'anglais.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ a b "Europeans and their Languages" (PDF). Ec.europa.eu. Retrieved 2015-06-20.
  7. ^ "България | Кой и колко учи чужд език в Европа". Dnevnik.bg. 2005-05-17. Retrieved 2015-06-20.
  8. ^ "Английски, немски и руски са най-популярните езици сред учениците у нас". Investor.bg (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 2023-07-08.
  9. ^ "Centrafrique – Organisation internationale de la Francophonie". Francophonie.org. Archived from the original on 2014-12-09. Retrieved 2015-06-20.
  10. ^ "Guinée-Bissau – Organisation internationale de la Francophonie". Francophonie.org. Archived from the original on 2015-04-03. Retrieved 2015-06-20.
  11. ^ "Mali – Organisation internationale de la Francophonie". Francophonie.org. Retrieved 2015-06-20.
  12. ^ "L’OIF suspend la Mauritanie", Radio France Internationale, 27 August 2008
  13. ^ "Madagascar – Organisation internationale de la Francophonie". Francophonie.org. Retrieved 2015-06-20.
  14. ^ "Vietnam- an active member of the Francophonie community". Voice of Vietnam. 20 March 2023.
  15. ^ "Ghana joins La Francophonie". Graphic Online.
  16. ^ "Canal Académie: Les merveilleux francophiles argentins–1". Il faut savoir qu'en 2006, 17% d'Argentins ont un ancêtre venu de France. Près de 6 millions d'Argentins ont donc des origines françaises.
  17. ^ https://www.cnnchile.com/pais/chile-ingresa-miembro-observador-organismo-paises-habla-francesa-que-significa_20241006/
  18. ^ "CSO - Census 2016 - Summary - Chapter 5 (Diversity)" (PDF). Central Statistics Office.
  19. ^ "French's Legal Status In Louisiana". www.crt.state.la.us. Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism. 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  20. ^ Venayre, Sylvain (1998). "Le moment mexicain dans l'histoire française de l'aventure (1840-1860)" (PDF). Histoire et sociétés de l'Amérique latine (in French) (7): 131. ISSN 1245-1517. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 December 2014. La conséquence de cette émigration fut que, en 1849, les Français représentaient la deuxième nationalité étrangère au Mexique, derrière les Espagnols.
  21. ^ Jones, Howard (2002). Crucible of Power:A History of American Foreign Relations to 1913. Lanham, Maryland: SR Books. p. 212. ISBN 0-8420-2916-8.
  22. ^ "Alger boycotte la francophonie". la-croix.com (in French). 27 November 2014. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  23. ^ "L'Algérie refuse d'adhérer à la Francophonie, mais participe aux assises de l'OIF depuis 2002". dia-algerie.com (in French). 24 November 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  24. ^ "À quand une Algérie membre de la Francophonie ?". bvoltaire.fr (in French). 3 December 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  25. ^ "Saudi Arabia's embarrassing bid to join the Francophonie family". France24. 10 October 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  26. ^ "Saudi Arabia withdraws bid to join Francophonie group". France24. 11 October 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  27. ^ "Le Land de Sarre : un succès francophone en Allemagne". saarland.de (in French). Ministerium der Finanzen und für Wissenschaft. 19 March 2021. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
  28. ^ "La francophonie au Brésil sous un regard historique" (in French). Le Courrier de la Nouvelle-Écosse. 5 July 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
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