EXCERPTS FROM KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION AT THE LAUNCH OF THE FRENCH E-LEARNING PLATFORM

‘We must together undertake an honest introspection of this phenomenon and address some of the underlying issues that dissuade students from French.’

‘Whereas formal international trade within West Africa is estimated to be just about five per cent of the sub region’s total trade, the informal international trade is estimated to be at least three times this number with people traveling across the borders to trade… Although there seems to be several challenges facing such traders, the most prominent is the French-English language divide, as such, if Ghanaians learn French, the number of transactions within Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) can increase.’

‘The ability to communicate in multiple languages is becoming more and more important in the increasingly integrated global business community, and French is 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.’