News Release

DALHOUSIE (CNB) - New Brunswickers are invited to join francophones around the world in celebrating International Francophonie Day, Friday, March 20. Dalhousie will host this year's activities.

"March 20 is a day dedicated to the French language," said Wellness, Culture and Sport Minister Hédard Albert, who is also the minister responsible for the Francophonie. "On International Francophonie Day, we celebrate our membership in the International Organization of the Francophonie, along with more than 200 million French speakers around the world. I am delighted that Dalhousie will host this year's festivities."

One of the International Francophonie Day events will be an evening of musical entertainment beginning at 8 o'clock in the L.E.R. Auditorium in Dalhousie. The event will feature Danny Boudreau and other New Brunswick performers such as Denis Richard, Oumou Soumaré, Linda Wedge, Émilie Bernard, Dariush Zarbafian, and Jean-Marc Couture, winner of the 2008 Accros de la chanson competition.

The free show, to be directed by René Poirier and hosted by André Roy, will be presented by the provincial and federal governments.

The provincial government is organizing activities on March 20 to educate New Brunswickers about the Francophonie. It is doing so in partnership with the Government of Canada; the Association des radios communautaires acadiennes du Nouveau-Brunswick; the Consulate General of France in the Atlantic Provinces; the Université de Moncton; the Fédération des jeunes francophones du Nouveau-Brunswick; and the Centre d'accueil et d'intégration des immigrant.es du Moncton métropolitain.

New Brunswick has been a member of the Francophonie since 1977. The province's bilateral and multilateral relations with the members of the Francophonie provide opportunities for the province to forge economic and cultural ties with countries in five continents.