The 16th Annual Francophonie Summit is This Weekend

New Brunswick Premier Brian Gallant and Economic Development Minister Francine Landry, who is also minister responsible for La Francophonie, will travel to Antananarivo, Madagascar, to participate in the 16th Francophonie Summit November 26 and 27. 

Landry says the theme for this year’s summit is "shared growth and responsible development: conditions for stability around the world and within La Francophonie."

She says the premier gets a seat at the table with heads of state and government like Prime Minister Trudeau and President Hollande because New Brunswick is offcially a bilingual province.

Gallant says the bilingual status has been particularly helpful attracting and hosting major international events. For example, Moncton and Dieppe will host the Canadian Francophone Games next year and the International Games of La Francophonie in 2021.

New Brunswick has been a member government of the International Organization of La Francophonie since 1977.

On his way to Madagascar, Gallant will travel to London, where he will address the Canada-UK Chamber of Commerce’s Energy Forum, as well as the London Energy Roundtable Conference.

The premier will then travel to Paris to speak at the ESG School of Commerce about New Brunswick’s role as a Canadian leader in cybersecurity.

Gallant is also expected to meet with executives from Barclays, CBS, Glencore,and MBDA Missiles, and with former president of Senegal and former Secretary-General of the International Organization of La Francophonie Abdou Diouf.