Member states of the International Organization of the Francophonie

The official list of member states of the International Organization of the Francophonie is available at the Francophonie website.

Mauritania

Mauritania

Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...

's membership was suspended on August 26, 2008, pending democratic elections, after a military coup d'état

2008 Mauritanian coup d'état

A coup d'état took place in Mauritania on 6 August 2008 when Mauritanian President Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi was ousted from power by a group of high ranking generals he had dismissed from office earlier that day.-Background:...

List of member states

Country	Joined	Language	Notes
	1999	Albanian Albanian language Albanian is an Indo-European language spoken by approximately 7.6 million people, primarily in Albania and Kosovo but also in other areas of the Balkans in which there is an Albanian population, including western Macedonia, southern Montenegro, southern Serbia and northwestern Greece...	approximately 30% of young Albanians choose French as their first foreign language
	2004	Catalan Catalan language Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...	Neighbouring France. The French President is co-Prince of Andorra. Read further: Languages of Andorra Languages of Andorra The following languages are currently spoken in the Principality of Andorra.- Catalan :Catalan is the only official language of Andorra. It is also the historical and traditional language of the country used by government, television, radio, and other national media and is the main language of all...
	1970	officially trilingual, French included	French is the native language of about 40% of the population and another 48% can speak it as a second, third or fourth language.http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_243_en.pdf Belgium's French community is also a member separately. See also: Languages of Belgium Languages of Belgium The Kingdom of Belgium has three official languages: Dutch, French, and German. A number of non-official, minority languages and dialects are spoken as well.-Dutch:... and Belgian French Belgian French Belgian French is the variety of French spoken mainly in the French Community of Belgium, alongside related minority regional languages such as Walloon, Picard, Champenois and Gaumais. The French spoken in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Burundi, which were formerly Belgian...
* Wallonia French Community of Belgium French Community of Belgium The French Community of Belgium is one of the three official communities in Belgium along with the Flemish Community and the German speaking Community. Although its name could suggest that it is a community of French citizens in Belgium, it is not...	1980	French French language French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts... official language	a community of Belgium with its two components Wallonia (excepting the German speaking community) and Brussels-Capital Region (its French-speaking majority)
	1970	French	former French colony French colonial empires The French colonial empire was the set of territories outside Europe that were under French rule primarily from the 17th century to the late 1960s. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the colonial empire of France was the second-largest in the world behind the British Empire. The French colonial empire...
	1993	Bulgarian Bulgarian language Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...	French is spoken by 9% as additional language, and is taught as a main foreign language in about 25% of primary schools.
	1970	French	former French colony
	1970	French	former Belgian UN-protectorate Belgian colonial empire The Belgian colonial empire consisted of three colonies possessed by Belgium between 1901 and 1962: Belgian Congo , Rwanda and Burundi...
	1993	Khmer Khmer language Khmer , or Cambodian, is the language of the Khmer people and the official language of Cambodia. It is the second most widely spoken Austroasiatic language , with speakers in the tens of millions. Khmer has been considerably influenced by Sanskrit and Pali, especially in the royal and religious...	former French protectorate (as a part of former French Indochina French Indochina French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887.... )
	1991	officially bilingual, French included	over 90% of country was a French colony
	1970	Officially bilingual Bilingualism in Canada The official languages of Canada are English and French, which "have equality of status and equal rights and privileges as to their use in all institutions of the Parliament and Government of Canada" according to Canada's constitution... , French included	the provinces Provinces and territories of Canada The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories... of Quebec and New Brunswick are participating governments; much of Quebec, Ontario Ontario Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa.... and the Maritimes Maritimes The Maritime provinces, also called the Maritimes or the Canadian Maritimes, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. On the Atlantic coast, the Maritimes are a subregion of Atlantic Canada, which also includes the... formed part of New France New France New France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period beginning with the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Spain and Great Britain in 1763... , the North American portion of the first French colonial empire French colonial empire The French colonial empire was the set of territories outside Europe that were under French rule primarily from the 17th century to the late 1960s. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the colonial empire of France was the second-largest in the world behind the British Empire. The 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	1977	officially bilingual, French included	considered a "participating government," this province of Canada is officially bilingual English-French and home to the largest community of Acadians.
* Quebec	1971	French	considered a "participating government," this province of Canada has French as its sole official language and is home to 85% of Canada's native francophones.
	1996	Portuguese Portuguese language Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...	Former Portuguese colony with many neighboring French-speaking countries.
	1973	officially bilingual, French included	former French colony
	1970	French	former French colony
	1977	officially trilingual, French included	former French colony
	1977	French	former Belgian colony Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter... . See also: Languages of the DRC Languages of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a multilingual country where an estimated total of 242 languages are spoken . The official language, inherited from the colonial period, is French...
	1981	French	former French colony
	1970	French	former French colony History of Côte d'Ivoire The date of the first human presence in Côte d'Ivoire has been difficult to determine because human remains have not been well-preserved in the country's humid climate... . See also: Languages of Côte d'Ivoire Languages of Côte d'Ivoire Major languages of Côte d'Ivoire include Baoulé, Dan, and Dioula. The official language is French, which was the colonial language....
	1977	officially bilingual, French included	former French colony History of Djibouti The Republic of Djibouti gained its independence on June 27, 1977. It is the successor to French Somaliland , which was created in the first half of the 19th century as a result of French interest in the Horn of Africa.-Early years:The history of Djibouti, recorded in poetry and songs of its...
	1979	English	French and then British colony British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the... ; Antillean Creole Antillean Creole Antillean Creole is a creole language with a vocabulary based on French. It is spoken primarily in the Lesser Antilles. Its grammar and vocabulary also include elements of Carib and African languages. Antillean Creole is related to Haitian Creole, but has a number of distinctive features; they are... , a French-based creole French-based creole languages A French Creole, or French-based Creole language, is a creole language based on the French language, more specifically on a 17th century koiné French extant in Paris, the French Atlantic harbors, and the nascent French colonies... language, is spoken by 90% of the population.
	1983	Arabic	traditional Francophone elite
	1989	(officially trilingual, French included)	Former Spanish colony surrounded by French-speaking countries.
Republic of Macedonia	2001	Macedonian Macedonian language Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...	French is taught as a second language in many Macedonian schools throughout the country.
	1970	French
	1970	French	former French colony
	2004	Greek Greek language Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...	French is understood and spoken by 8% of the population
	1981	French	former French colony
	1979	Portuguese Portuguese language Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...	country surrounded by French-speaking countries. Former Portuguese colony
	1970	officially bilingual, French included	former French colony
	1991	Lao Lao language Lao or Laotian is a tonal language of the Tai–Kadai language family. It is the official language of Laos, and also spoken in the northeast of Thailand, where it is usually referred to as the Isan language. Being the primary language of the Lao people, Lao is also an important second language for...	former French colony
	1973	Arabic; French French language French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts... is an administrative language	Under a French mandate League of Nations mandate A League of Nations mandate was a legal status for certain territories transferred from the control of one country to another following World War I, or the legal instruments that contained the internationally agreed-upon terms for administering the territory on behalf of the League... from 1920–1943, historical Crusader ties Kingdom of Jerusalem The Kingdom of Jerusalem was a Catholic kingdom established in the Levant in 1099 after the First Crusade. The kingdom lasted nearly two hundred years, from 1099 until 1291 when the last remaining possession, Acre, was destroyed by the Mamluks, but its history is divided into two distinct periods.... , French language used in schools and universities, and is understood by the majority of the population.
	1970	Officially trilingual Languages of Luxembourg The linguistic situation in Luxembourg is characterised by the practice and the recognition of three official languages: French and German and the national language Luxembourgish established in law in 1984... , French included
	1970–1977, 1989	officially bilingual, French included	former French colony
	1970	French	former French colony
	1980	Arabic	former French colony, French is an administrative language
	1970	English English language English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria... ; Creole is the mother tongue of the general population.	Dutch, French, and then British colony; French is widely used in commerce and by the media.
	1996	Romanian Romanian language Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...	close ties with Romania
	1970	French	independent country enclaved in France
	1981	Arabic	former French protectorate; French is commonly used
	1970	French	former French colony
	1993	Romanian Romanian language Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...	French is understood and spoken by 24% of the population. Historic cultural ties with France, especially during the late 19th century and early 20th century.
	1970	officially trilingual with French included	former Belgian UN-protectorate. In 2009, became a member of the Commonwealth Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states... , but remains a member within Francophonie.
	1981	English	Former French and British colony. Antillean Creole Antillean Creole Antillean Creole is a creole language with a vocabulary based on French. It is spoken primarily in the Lesser Antilles. Its grammar and vocabulary also include elements of Carib and African languages. Antillean Creole is related to Haitian Creole, but has a number of distinctive features; they are... , a French-based creole language French-based creole languages A French Creole, or French-based Creole language, is a creole language based on the French language, more specifically on a 17th century koiné French extant in Paris, the French Atlantic harbors, and the nascent French colonies... , is spoken by 90% of the population.
	1999	Portuguese	Former Portuguese colony, neighboring French-speaking countries.
	1970	French	former French colony, part of former French West Africa French West Africa French West Africa was a federation of eight French colonial territories in Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan , French Guinea , Côte d'Ivoire , Upper Volta , Dahomey and Niger...
	1976	officially trilingual, French included	former French colony (first empire), later British colony, French is commonly used
	1996	Officially quadrilingual, French included	French is the native language of about 20% of all Swiss.
	1970	French	former French colony
	1970	Arabic	former French protectorate; French is commonly used
	1979	officially trilingual Languages of Vanuatu Vanuatu has three official languages, English, French, and Bislama, a creole language evolved from English. Bislama is the first language of many urban ni-Vanuatu, that is, the residents of Port Vila and Luganville. It is the most common second language elsewhere in the Vanuatu islands...	former French and British condominium Condominium (international law) In international law, a condominium is a political territory in or over which two or more sovereign powers formally agree to share equally dominium and exercise their rights jointly, without dividing it up into 'national' zones.Although a condominium has always been...
	1970	Vietnamese Vietnamese language Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...	former French colony

Associate member

Joined	Language	Notes
2008	Armenian Armenian language The Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people. It is the official language of the Republic of Armenia as well as in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The language is also widely spoken by Armenian communities in the Armenian diaspora...	Historical French-Armenian ties, including the Armenian national movement Armenian national movement Armenian national movement, also known as the "Armenian revolutionary movement" and Armenian national liberation movement was the Armenian national effort to re-establish an Armenian state in the historic Armenian homelands of eastern Asia Minor and the Transcaucasus... and the French-Armenian Agreement of 1916 French-Armenian Agreement (1916) The French-Armenian Agreement of October 27, 1916 was the political and military accord regarding the support of Armenian nationalist on the side of the allies in World War I. The agreement was reported to the Talat Pasha, Ottoman Empire, and a copy of this information was found in the Ottoman... . A significant part of the Armenian diaspora Armenian diaspora The Armenian diaspora refers to the Armenian communities outside the Republic of Armenia and self proclaimed de facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic... lives in France. See further: Armenia–France relations, Languages of Armenia Languages of Armenia Armenian is the official language of Armenia, and is spoken as a first language by 97.7% of its population. Armenian belongs to an independent branch of the Indo-European language family. It is a highly inflective language, with a complicated system of declensions. Modern Armenian is agglutinative,...
2006	Greek Greek language Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;... , Turkish Turkish language Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...	French is understood and spoken by 12% of the population; Historical ties through the Lusignan Lusignan The Lusignan family originated in Poitou near Lusignan in western France in the early 10th century. By the end of the 11th century, they had risen to become the most prominent petty lords in the region from their castle at Lusignan... rule of the Kingdom of Cyprus Kingdom of Cyprus The Kingdom of Cyprus was a Crusader kingdom on the island of Cyprus in the high and late Middle Ages, between 1192 and 1489. It was ruled by the French House of Lusignan.-History:... during the Middle Ages. The Republic of Cyprus enjoys a robust relationship with France and looks to French policy on many issues .
2006	English	The country surrounded by French-speaking countries. See further: Languages of Ghana Languages of Ghana Different sources give different figures for the number of languages of Ghana. This is because of different classifications of varieties as either languages or dialects. Ethnologue lists a total of 79 languages....

Observers

Joined	Language	Notes
2004	German German language German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....	French is spoken by 10% as additional language.See further: Languages of Austria Languages of Austria The Languages of Austria include German, the official language and lingua franca, Austro-Bavarian, the main language outside Vorarlberg, Alemannic, the main language in Vorarlberg, and several minority languages.-German:... .
2010	Bosnian Bosnian language Bosnian is a South Slavic language, spoken by Bosniaks. As a standardized form of the Shtokavian dialect, it is one of the three official languages of Bosnia and Herzegovina.... , Croatian Croatian language Croatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries... , Serbian Serbian language Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
2004	Croatian Croatian language Croatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries...	French is understood and spoken by 4% of the population, and a large part of the country was part of the Illyrian Provinces Illyrian provinces The Illyrian Provinces was an autonomous province of the Napoleonic French Empire on the north and east coasts of the Adriatic Sea between 1809 and 1816. Its capital was established at Laybach... during Napoleonic rule from 1809 to 1813.
1999	Czech Czech language Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...	French is understood and spoken by 2% of the population.
2010	Spanish Spanish language Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...	Neighbouring Francophone Haiti Haiti Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island... . Francophone minority. French colony from 1795 to 1808. French taught at most schools as a 3rd language.
2010	Estonian Estonian language Estonian is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1.1 million people in Estonia and tens of thousands in various émigré communities...
2004	Georgian Georgian language Georgian is the native language of the Georgians and the official language of Georgia, a country in the Caucasus.Georgian is the primary language of about 4 million people in Georgia itself, and of another 500,000 abroad...	Like Armenia, Georgia had a connection with the French kingdoms in the Middle Ages.
2004	Hungarian Hungarian language Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....	French is understood and spoken by 2% of the population.See further: Languages of Hungary Languages of Hungary The languages spoken in Hungary are as follows.-Languages:*Demographics of Hungary... .
2008	Latvian Latvian language Latvian is the official state language of Latvia. It is also sometimes referred to as Lettish. There are about 1.4 million native Latvian speakers in Latvia and about 150,000 abroad. The Latvian language has a relatively large number of non-native speakers, atypical for a small language...
1999	Lithuanian Lithuanian language Lithuanian is the official state language of Lithuania and is recognized as one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.96 million native Lithuanian speakers in Lithuania and about 170,000 abroad. Lithuanian is a Baltic language, closely related to Latvian, although they...	French is understood and spoken by 1% of the population.
2010	Montenegrin Montenegrin language Montenegrin is a name used for the Serbo-Croatian language as spoken by Montenegrins; it also refers to an incipient standardized form of the Shtokavian dialect of Serbo-Croatian used as the official language of Montenegro...	French is taught in one-third of schools.
2006	Portuguese Portuguese language Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...	former Portuguese colony.See further: Languages of Mozambique Languages of Mozambique Mozambique is a multilingual country. A number of Bantu languages are indigenous to Mozambique. Portuguese, inherited from the colonial period, is the official language, and Mozambique is a full member of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries... .
1996	Polish Polish language Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...	Poland has historic ties to France; French is understood and spoken by 3% of the population, and many Polish emigrants settled in France in the 20th century.
2006	Serbian Serbian language Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....	French is taught in one-third of schools.See further: Languages of Serbia Languages of Serbia Serbia has only one nationwide official language, which is Serbian. Other languages spoken in Serbia include Albanian , Hungarian, Romanian, Slovak, Rusyn, Croatian , Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Romani, Czech, Bosnian, Vlach, Bunjevac, Macedonian,... .
2002	Slovak Slovak language Slovak , is an Indo-European language that belongs to the West Slavic languages .Slovak is the official language of Slovakia, where it is spoken by 5 million people...	French is spoken by 2% as additional language
1999	Slovene	French is spoken by 4% as additional language, and a large part of the country was part of the Illyrian Provinces Illyrian provinces The Illyrian Provinces was an autonomous province of the Napoleonic French Empire on the north and east coasts of the Adriatic Sea between 1809 and 1816. Its capital was established at Laybach... with its capital in Ljubljana Ljubljana Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants... during Napoleonic rule from 1809 to 1813.
2008	Thai Thai language Thai , also known as Central Thai and Siamese, is the national and official language of Thailand and the native language of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Tai–Kadai language family. Historical linguists have been unable to definitively...	Thailand shares the same borders with two former French colonies (Cambodia and Laos) and French is taught as the third language in some Thai schools.
2006	Ukrainian Ukrainian language Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....	See further: Languages of Ukraine Languages of Ukraine The official language of Ukraine is Ukrainian, an East Slavic language which is the native language of 67.5% of Ukraine's population. Russian is the native language of 29.6% of Ukraine's population and the rest are native speakers of other languages... .
2010	Arabic Arabic language Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...	French is taught as the optional second or third language in some private schools.

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