Ghana is surrounded by many French-speaking countries. Currently in Africa, eight out of the fifteen countries of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are French-speaking, accounting for 53% of French-speaking countries in the West African sub-region. Similarly, of the 55 countries in the
African Union, 26 of them are officially French-speaking. In addition, about 29 countries in the world have French as their official language and the language is commonly spoken in many other countries. Moreover, French is the second most taught language in the world, emphasizing the importance of the language and the need to acquire it.

Despite the strategic geographical location of Ghana, that is the country being surrounded by many French-speaking countries, several people do not speak French and this inhibits effective communication between Ghanaians and other francophone counterparts. In this era of globalization, it is necessary to encourage the learning of French among Ghanaians and other Anglophones for social, economic and political benefits. More specifically, apart from one deriving common benefits of acquiring international jobs or making friends, French acquisition will improve the country’s international relations.

Furthermore, the plan by Heads of West African countries to have a common ECOWAS currency by 2020 presents great opportunities for regional integration and trade, hence the need to acquire the two dominant languages of the sub-region: French and English. Similarly,the coming into force of the Continental Free Trade Agreement(CFTA), which is an Africa-wide free trade agreement (FTA) designed to boost intra-African trade and pave the way for the future establishment of a continental customs union, will also present great business opportunities. To tap the full benefits of these initiatives will require one to be bilingual in French and English.

It is for these reasons that the partners of this project have designed this French e-Learning Platform (FeLP), and are committed to support many anglophone workers and students to take advantage of the platform to acquire the needed communication skills in French.