Dr.Matthew Opoku Prempeh, Minister of Education of Ghana, believes that French should be promoted across the country, citing a study conducted by the Foundation for International Development Study and Research which showed that if countries share a common language it boosts their international trade by about 30%.
He explained this was because the common language factor makes it easier for businesses to move across borders in a speech read on his behalf at the launch of French E-Learning Platform (FeLP), initiated by Espace Francophone Ghana in partnership with Crystal Galaxy College and Metlite.
The platform aims to provide Ghanaians and other anglophones with a modern and convenient tool to learn French with an online network of Ghanaian and non-Ghanaian tutors.
Prempeh added that Ghanaian President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, a fluent French speaker, strongly believes that bilingualism is part of a quality education and an asset for employers.
He also said the ability to communicate in multiple languages was becoming more and more important in the increasingly integrated global business community, and that French was one of the “important global working languages.”
“Of course, English being our official language gives us important leverage, but to go the extra mile to acquire language skills in French puts us at an extra advantage”, he added.
Julie Fournier, cooperation attaché at the French Embassy, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, also stressed the importance for Ghanaians to learn the French language.
Fournier added that many people were interested in the language, however, some may have had bad experiences when they were in high school.
