Minister of State at the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs Chrysoula Zacharopoulou as part of her working visit to Ghana has on Monday 3rd April, visited the Lycée Français International Jaccques Prevert and Ecole Ronsard both in Accra.
The three-day working visit is part of a process of renewing the partnership between France, Europe and the African continent focused on youth, innovation and culture, and the construction of a balanced, reciprocal and responsible relationship, marked by the speech of the President of the French Republic Emmanuel Macron on 27 February 2023.
Lycée Français international Jacques Prévert
At the Lycée. She visited a physics and chemistry laboratory where students from the first year of secondary school were able to carry out experiments.
The Lycée Français international Jacques Prévert was created in 1963 by the Parents’ Association in order to educate children of French nationals of the French Embassy. Gradually the school diversified and students of many different nationalities are studying there
At the beginning of the school year in September 2020, it welcomed 650 pupils of more than 30 different nationalities. Since January 2021, it has been known as the “Lycée Français International Jacques Prévert d’Accra”.
It is the only Ghanaian school to be approved as an AEFE (Agency for French Education Abroad) school in Ghana by the French Ministry of Education. The school is attracting more and more Ghanaian students.
Today, the Lycée Français has 730 students, including 200 French, 200 Ghanaian and 330 students of other nationalities. It is the bearer of universal values such as tolerance, equality between girls and boys, equal opportunities, intellectual curiosity and the promotion of critical thinking. Students interact in an intercultural environment, rich in differences.
With a 100% success rate at the “baccalaureate”, the French final exam at the end of secondary school, the Lycée Français is an establishment of excellence. It is a good example of the development of the French education system in Africa.
Ecole Ronsard
At Ecole Ronsard, the Minister of State was welcomed with Ghanaian culture dancing and art performances.
Zacharopoulou said being bilingual comes with lots of opportunities.
Using herself as an example Zacharopoulou said she was not born in France but as a young girl in Greece, she was determined to learn French.
She advised the students to take their lessons seriously and commended tutors for their good work.
The Ecole Ronsard is a bilingual French-English school, labelled LabelFrancEducation. It offers bilingual education from nursery to Year 9.
In partnership with the French Ministry of Education, Ecole Ronsard prepares today’s students to be tomorrow’s leaders in their respective communities, with the motto “give them the keys to the future”. But this school is not only about academic performance; sport, arts, music and values such as obedience, tolerance and determination are central to their education.
Being surrounded by French-speaking countries, learning French in Ghana is becoming increasingly important, both in terms of communication with one’s neighbours and as an additional asset for entering the Ghanaian job market.
The Ecole Ronsard being recognized by the Ghana Education Service process is also in line with the Ghanaian government’s willingness to strengthen its links with the French language and deepen the learning of French in its public institutions but also in private education, where many schools offer bilingual programmes.
By: Joseph Nii Ankrah