International Francophonie Day: Showing respect for cultural diversity
With the theme "I educate myself, therefore I act," International Francophonie Day is an opportunity to affirm the Francophone community’s commitment to common values of peace, solidarity, cooperation, and respect for cultural diversity.
THE HANOI TIMES — The celebration of the International Day of Francophonie opened on March 20 at the Temple of Literature, the first university in Vietnam, in line with the theme of this year's International Day of Francophonie "I educate myself, therefore I act."
According to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Do Hung Viet, the celebration of the International Day of Francophonie aims to express love for the French language, and reaffirm the commitment of the French-speaking community to the common values of peace, solidarity, cooperation, respect for cultural diversity, and sustainable development.
Students from the French Faculty of Hanoi University perform at the ceremony. Photo: HANU
Viet said that this year's theme is very meaningful: Learning to access the rich knowledge and diversity of Francophone cultures to promote deeper cooperation between countries, localities, businesses, and people.
Learning to take advantage of the great opportunities that science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation can bring to maximize inherent potential and development. Therefore, learning must always be a top priority to promote a Francophone space for development and prosperity, he said.
"Vietnam is committed to promoting "lifelong learning" with many specific policies and measures to develop quality, equitable and sustainable education. The country has decided to exempt tuition fees for all public school students from the 2025-2026 school year, while increasing investment in education and training to ensure high-quality human resources for a new stage of development," Viet said.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Do Hung Viet speaks at the celebration. Photo: Thanh Long/The Hanoi Times
Edgar Doerig, Regional Representative for the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF), called on organizations to commit themselves to continuing to popularize the French language and incorporate French into work and life.
According to Doerig, since the creation of the Agency for Cultural and Technical Cooperation (ACCT), which later became the OIF, on March 20, 1970, the day has been highly symbolic. It celebrates the diversity of the French language, spoken by 321 million people on five continents.
"A vector of values such as coexistence, tolerance, and respect for diversity, French is a global language, the only language spoken on all continents along with English. It is also a modern and dynamic language, the language of work and innovation, the language of culture and opportunity," said Doerig.
He added that the OIF welcomes Vietnam's strong commitment to education, as demonstrated by the exemption of all fees for students in public education from kindergarten to high school across the country from the start of the 2025 to 2026 academic years.
