Francophonie summit to be held in Tunisia in November to be postponed
Tunis, Tunisia (PANA) - Representatives of French-speaking countries on Tuesday agreed "by consensus" to postpone the 18th International Organization of the Francophonie (OIF) summit scheduled for next month in Tunisia.
The decision was taken at an extraordinary session in person and by video conference, under the chairmanship of the Secretary General of La Francophonie, Louise Mushikiwabo.
This session of the Permanent Council of La Francophonie (CPF) comes two weeks after consultations between Ms. Mushikiwabo, the Tunisian authorities and other member countries of the organisation.
According to a statement published on the website of the organisation, the postponement will allow Tunisia to organise this important summit "in the best possible conditions".
Members of the CPF recommended the holding, as soon as possible, of an extraordinary session of the Ministerial Conference of La Francophonie to quickly validate this proposal.
Meanwhile, the Tunisian authorities have confirmed the proposed postponement of the summit scheduled for 20 and 21 November, an official statement issued on Tuesday said.
According to the Tunisian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the representatives of the member countries who met on Tuesday agreed to postpone this "important event" to 2022, while maintaining that the venue should remain Djerba, an island in southern Tunisia.
According to the statement, the Tunisian delegation to the meeting expressed its "full availability" to hold the summit on the scheduled date.
The OIF has 88 states and governments, including 54 members, seven associate members and 27 observers.
Last Monday, President Kaïs Saied accused Tunisian unnamed activists of working with many countries to derail the Djerba summit.
-0- PANA BB/JSG/BBA/MA 13Oct2021
