Youth, mobility, and university exchanges: a “Summit of two banks” held in Marseille in 2019
Before ambassadors and representatives of France throughout the world gathered this week in Paris, the French president announced the organisation of a “Summit of two banks” (“Sommet des deux rives”) to “refund a more inclusive Mediterranean policy”, reminding that Africa is the “continent where the future of Francophonie will play, and, to a large extent, also the future of our language and our cultural influence”.
After having also reminded that education, culture, and knowledge “relocated at the heart of the French policy of international cooperation” are an “universal good”, Macron also announced the “organisation of a Summit of two banks based on the current 5+5 dialogue, but built in an even more inclusive way, with high contribution from civil societies”.
Ten years after the creation of the Union for the Mediterranean, French president Emmanuel Macron decided that it is necessary to “pick up the lost thread of a different Mediterranean policy by learning all the lessons of what we have achieved, and what we could not achieve by including all civil societies, but also by refunding a more inclusive Mediterranean policy, which is also without a doubt one of the conditions to the consolidation of the North Africa region”.
Macron also said that “this policy is essential to talk about youth, mobility, energy, and academic exchange, and in the coming months we will be preparing the Summit held in Marseille in early summer 2019”.
In the same time, Macron wants “more than ever increase our culture and our language” and ensured that “we’re done with a defensive vision of our language, and we now want to promote a offensive and disinhibited policy of the French language promotion”. This is in such context that Macron “wanted a deep consideration on French education abroad that, on the base of reports [I] asked from the government, lead to the announcement of a reform in autumn”.
Read the French president's full speech given on August 27 during the Ambassadors’ Conference:
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