Member states of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie

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This is a list of the member states of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie. These governments belong to an international organisation representing countries and regions where French is the first ("mother") or customary language, where a significant proportion of the population are francophones (French speakers) or where there is a notable affiliation with French culture.[1][2][3]

Map highlighting member states
  member (national)
  member (regional)
  associated member
  suspended member
  observer

List of member, associate, observer states

Member states

More information Country, Joined ...
Country Joined LanguageNotes
 Albania1999AlbanianBrief French protectorate in Korçë between 1916 and 1920. Approximately 30% of young Albanians choose French as their first foreign language.[4] Albania is home to 300,000 French speakers, and it is the second foreign language of education after English.
 Andorra2004CatalanFormerly part of First French Empire. The President of France is also a Co-Prince of Andorra.
 Armenia2012ArmenianSee further: Armenia-France relations
 Belgium1970officially trilingual, French includedFrench is the native language of about 39% of the population[5] 48% are non-native speakers of French.[6] Belgium's French community is also a member separately. See also: Languages of Belgium and Belgian French
* Wallonia French Community of Belgium[a]1980French as official languageA community of Belgium with its two components Wallonia (excluding the German-speaking community) and Brussels-Capital Region (its French-speaking majority)
 Benin1970FrenchFormer French colony
 Bulgaria1993BulgarianFrench is spoken as a foreign language by 9% of the Bulgarian people, and taught as a main foreign language in about 25% of primary schools. Furthermore, French is studied by 7.7% of high school students.[7][8]
 Burkina Faso1970FrenchFormer French colony. Membership suspended in 2022 due to a coup.[b]
 Burundi1970officially trilingual, FrenchFormer Belgian UN-protectorate
 Cambodia1993KhmerFormer French protectorate (as a part of former French Indochina)
 Cameroon1991officially bilingual, French includedOver 90% of country was a French protectorate (1945–1959)
 Canada1970officially bilingual, French included The provinces of Quebec and New Brunswick are participating governments; much of eastern Canada was part of the first French colonial empire. As of 2004, a government representative from Ontario also attends as part of the Canadian delegation, although Ontario is not yet a participating government in its own right.
* New Brunswick[c] 1977 officially bilingual, French includedConsidered a "participating government", this province of Canada is officially bilingual English-French and home to the largest community of Acadians.
* Quebec[c]1971FrenchConsidered a "participating government", this province of Canada has French as its official language and is home to 85% of Canada's native francophones.
 Cape Verde1996PortugueseFrench is spoken as a foreign language by ~11% of the population as of 2014
 Central African Republic1973officially bilingual, French includedFormer French colony. The Central African Republic was suspended for instances of la Francophonie at the 88th session of the CPF in March 2012.[9]
 Chad1970officially bilingual, French includedFormer French colony
 Comoros1977officially trilingual, French includedFormer French colony
Congo-Brazzaville1981FrenchFormer French colony
Congo-Kinshasa1977FrenchFormer Belgian colony. See also: Languages of the DRC
Côte d'Ivoire1970FrenchFormer French colony. See also: Languages of Côte d'Ivoire
 Cyprus 2024 Greek, Turkish Cyprus was ruled by the French-origin Lusignan dynasty from 1192 until 1489. About 12% of the Cyprus population speaks and understands French.
 Djibouti1977officially bilingual, French includedFormer French colony
 Dominica1979EnglishFrench and then British colony; Antillean Creole, a French-based creole language, is spoken by 90% of the population.
 Egypt1983ArabicFrench sees use as foreign language in education and the country was a French colony for a short period from 1798 to 1801
 Equatorial Guinea1989officially trilingual, French includedCountry surrounded by French-speaking countries. Former Spanish colony
 France1970FrenchFounder, origin of the French language
 Gabon1970FrenchFormer French colony
 Ghana 2024 English All land borders with French-speaking countries (all former colonies of French West Africa) and trade partners. Study of French is being made compulsory at the basic educational level and certain subjects will be taught in both English and French.
 Greece2004GreekFrench spoken as a foreign language by ~7% of the population as of 2014
 Guinea1981–2021
2024		FrenchFormer French colony. Membership suspended in 2021 due to a coup, but was reinstated in 2024.[10]
 Guinea-Bissau1979PortugueseCountry surrounded by French-speaking countries. Former Portuguese colony. Guinea-Bissau was suspended on 18 April 2012 following a coup d'état.[11]
 Haiti1970officially bilingual, French includedFormer French colony
 Laos1991LaoFormer French colony (as a part of former French Indochina)
 Lebanon1973Arabic and French[d]Under a French mandate from 1920 to 1943
 Luxembourg1970officially trilingual, French included
 North Macedonia2001MacedonianFrench spoken as a foreign language by ~11% of the population as of 2014
 Madagascar1970–1977
1989		officially bilingual, French includedFormer French colony
 Mali1970FrenchFormer French colony. Mali's membership was suspended in March 2012 due to a coup,[12] and again in 2020.[b]
 Mauritania1980ArabicFormer French colony, French is an administrative language. Mauritania's membership was suspended on 26 August 2008, pending democratic elections, after a military coup d'état,[13] then again in April 2009.[14]
 Mauritius1970Creole is the mother tongue. French and English are also widely usedDutch, French, and then British colony; French is widely used in commerce and by the media.[citation needed] French is also a language of instruction in schools.[citation needed]
 Moldova1996RomanianFrench spoken as a foreign language by ~2% of the population as of 2014
 Monaco1970FrenchIndependent country enclaved in France
 Morocco1981Arabic and BerberFormer French and Spanish protectorate
 Niger1970FrenchFormer French colony. Membership suspended due to a coup in 2023.[b]
 Romania1993RomanianFrench is understood and spoken by 26% of the population.[6]
 Rwanda1970officially quadrilingual, French includedFormer Belgian UN-protectorate. In 2009, became a member of the Commonwealth, but remains a member within Francophonie.
 Saint Lucia1981EnglishFormer French and British colony. Antillean Creole, a French-based creole language, is spoken by 90% of the population.
 São Tomé and Príncipe1999PortugueseFrench spoken as a foreign language by ~20% of the population as of 2014
 Senegal1970FrenchFormer French colony
 Seychelles1976officially trilingual, French includedFormer French colony (first empire), later British colony, French is commonly used
 Switzerland1996officially quadrilingual, French includedFrench is the native language of about 20% of all Swiss.
 Togo1970FrenchFormer French colony
 Tunisia1970ArabicFormer French protectorate
 Vanuatu1979officially trilingualFormer French and British condominium of New Hebrides
 Vietnam1970[e]VietnameseFormer French protectorates and colony, former French associated state
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Associate states

More information Country, Joined ...
Country Joined LanguageNotes
 Kosovo2014Albanian and SerbianTraditional diplomatic and commercial ties with France. French is taught as a third language in most secondary schools. See further: France-Kosovo relations
 New Caledonia2016French and New Caledonian languagesSui generis collectivity of France. Former French colony (1853–1946) and overseas territory (1946–1999)
 Qatar2012ArabicStrong military ties with France. See further: France-Qatar relations
 Serbia2006SerbianTraditional diplomatic, military and cultural ties with France. French is widely taught as a second foreign language in schools. See further: France-Serbia relations
 United Arab Emirates2010ArabicMilitary and cultural ties with France See further: France-United Arab Emirates relations
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Observer states

More information Country, Joined ...
Country Joined LanguageNotes
 Angola2024Portuguese
 Argentina2016Spanish and others

Argentina has a large French community. Today more than six million Argentines have some degree of French ancestry (up to 17% of the total population).[18]

 Austria2004GermanRoughly 11% of the population also speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
 Bosnia and Herzegovina2010Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian
 Chile2024SpanishChile has a large French community. French is the second compulsory language in middle school.[19]
 Costa Rica2014SpanishFrench is the second compulsory language in middle school.
 Croatia2004CroatianPart of the Illyrian Provinces under Napoleon's French Empire. See further: Croatia-France relations
Czechia1999Czech~2% of the population speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
 Dominican Republic2010SpanishNeighbouring with Francophone Haiti at the west within Hispaniola.
 Estonia2010Estonian~1% of the population speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
 French Polynesia2024French and TahitianOverseas collectivity and overseas country of France.
The Gambia2018EnglishBorder with Senegal, a French-speaking country.
 Georgia2004Georgian~0.4% of the population speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
 Hungary2004Hungarian
 Ireland2018English and IrishFrench is the second most common foreign language spoken at home in Ireland (after Polish) and most commonly spoken by those born in Ireland.[20]
 Latvia2008Latvian~1% of the population speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
 Lithuania1999Lithuanian~2% of the population speaks French as a foreign language as of 2014.
* Louisiana[f]2018EnglishU.S. state with a francophone minority. Once part of the first French colonial empire — now it is home to a strong influence of Cajun, Creole, and Haitian language and culture. Use of the French language in Louisiana is promoted through the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana, a state agency that is responsible for preserving the state's "French heritage".[21]
 Malta2018Maltese and EnglishFormerly occupied by France.
 Mexico2014SpanishA large number of French immigrants arrived in Mexico since the 1830s and today number over six million French descendants.[22] Second Mexican Empire, a puppet state of the Second French Empire under Napoleon III.[23]
 Montenegro2010MontenegrinPart of the Illyrian Provinces under Napoleon's French Empire.
 Mozambique2006PortugueseTrading partner across the Mozambique Channel with French-speaking and the former French colony of Madagascar.
* Nova Scotia[c]2024EnglishA province of Canada that was formerly part of Acadia and contains a community of Acadians. In the 2021 Canadian census, 10.4% of Nova Scotians reported having knowledge of French and 2.9% reported it as their mother tongue. French is also a recognized regional language in Nova Scotia.
* Ontario[c]2016English[g]A province of Canada whose area was once a part of the Pays d'en Haut region of New France and is home to a francophone minority, the Franco-Ontarians. Although French is an official language in the province's judiciary, legislature, and educational system — the province as a whole is not officially bilingual — with other French-language provincial services not offered province-wide. However, Ontario's French Language Services Act does require Ontario government departments to provide French-language services in areas with significant francophone populations and recognizes the French language as a "historic language of Ontario".
 Poland1996PolishLong-standing cultural and historic ties — Henry III of France was King of Poland from 1573 to 1574 and the Duchy of Warsaw was a client state allied with the First French Empire from 1807 to 1815. France was home to notable Polish émigrés — including Adam Mickiewicz, Frédéric Chopin, and Marie Skłodowska-Curie.
* Saarland[h]2024GermanA German state that was a French protectorate from 1947 to 1956 — two years after the dissolution of Nazi Germany in 1945.
 Slovakia2002Slovak
 Slovenia1999SlovenePart of the Illyrian Provinces under Napoleon's French Empire
 South Korea2016KoreanThe Joseon Dynasty was invaded twice by the Second French Empire during the 19th century. Furthermore, the Catholic population grew as a result of French Jesuit missionaries in the country. See further: France-South Korea relations
 Thailand2008ThaiThailand's observer status was suspended from 2014 to 2019 for violating the Constitution, illegitimate seizure of power, and human rights violations[24].Besides, Thailand has a long history of international relations with France. See further: Thailand-France relations
 Ukraine2006Ukrainian
 Uruguay2012Spanish
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Note:
  Participation suspended
  Founder of La Francophonie (OIF)
  Withdrawn/suspended but rejoined again

Other candidates

Some countries could also potentially join the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie on the basis of being part of the French colonial empire, including Algeria,[25][26][27] Syria, Pondicherry[i] and Chandannagar[i] regions of India. In 2016, Saudi Arabia applied to join the organisation despite having no historical colonial ties with France.[28] However, the Saudis withdrew their bid in October 2018 due to pressure over their human rights record.[29] In 2022, Brazil applied to join the organization as observer because neighboring with the French Guiana at the north and west — have historical site named Fort Coligny in Rio de Janeiro built by French naval officer Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon in 1555.[30] In 2024, Italian autonomous region of Valle d'Aosta[j] applied to join the organization as observer because neighboring with Switzerland at the north and France at the west — have 10% Francophone population.[31]

Notes

  1. [a]
    Belgian linguistic community
  2. [b]
    In March 2025, Niger announced its withdrawal from the organization three years after it was suspended.[15] This was followed by the withdrawal of Burkina Faso and Mali, which cited "selective application of sanctions" and "contempt for Mali’s sovereignty".[16]
  3. [c]
    Canadian province
  4. [d]
    French is the secondary language in Lebanon.
  5. [e]
    Originally joined as the Republic of Vietnam in 1970. Its successor, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, re-joined the organisation in 1979.[17]
  6. [f]
    U.S. state
  7. [g]
    French is a regional administrative language in Ontario.
  8. [h]
    German state
  9. [i]
    Indian city
  10. [j]
    Italian autonomous region

See also

References

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