44th La Francophonie ministerial confab: Tackling rising military takeovers on agenda.

When the Minister of External Relations, Lejeune Mbella Mbella, briefed the press on the state of the country’s preparedness to host the confab on Monday October 23, he said focus during the confab will be on “political and institutional situations that have led to Francophonie countries experiencing political crisis”.

Delegates, the minister said, will strategise and launch a bid to advocate good governance to address what is gradually becoming a disturbing reality in the French-speaking world.

“The upcoming conference will be an avenue for member countries to address key issues affecting our bloc. Work will also focus on monitoring the political and institutional situations of countries experiencing political instability and structuring advocacy for good governance in the French-speaking world,” Mbella Mbella stated.

To better handle the situation, Minister Mbella Mbella announced that several activities will be carried out before and during the upcoming conference to give officials and participating delegations the opportunity to come up with better solutions.

Closed door meeting on breakdown in democracy

One of the activities programmed for the conference, the minister disclosed, is a closed-door meeting that will focus on La Francophonie and the rising breakdown in democracy. 

He said the theme for the meeting will be: “Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, OIF, and the recurrent breakdown of democracy in the French-speaking world”.

Minister Mbella Mbella added that Cameroon has submitted a “draft declaration on Good Governance at the service of political stability, economic and social prosperity and cultural influence in the Francophonie block,” for adoption by ministers and heads of delegation during the confab.

The validation of the proposal, the minister said he is hoping “will further enrich the doctrinal corpus of La Francophonie in terms of democracy and Good Governance. In so doing, it will also reinforce Cameroon's image as a force to be reckoned with”.

The Ministerial Conference of La Francophonie is the biggest gathering of the Francophonie bloc after the Francophonie Summit.

The event is a moment for member countries of La Francophonie to strategise on ways to implement the decisions arrived at during the Summit also held annually. Cameroon will be the first CEMAC country to play host to the event next month.

The theme of the conference is: “Good Governance: A guarantee of political, economic and cultural stability for Francophone citizens”. 

The event will be attended by the head of La Francophonie, Rwanda’s Louis Mushikiwabo and the organisation’s Secretary General.

Talks on political stability timely

The decision to choose political instability in La Francophonie as one of the key topics for discussion, pundits say, is timely, especially given the current state of things.

This is mainly due to recent hitches in political transitions in French-speaking countries. To note that the 88-member country bloc plays host to countries that have suffered coups, especially in Africa.

Since 2020, some eight coup d’etats have been recorded in La Francophonie member nations viz; Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea Conakry and Niger; La Francophonie's place of birth. The most recent of the coups took place in Gabon on August 30 this year.