- Targets journalists, teachers,
The French Embassy in Nigeria has stated that it will invest six hundred thousand euros to improve French speaking as part of a programme that will last for two years and will target journalists, teachers, and selected institutions in Nigeria.
This declaration was made in Abuja by the French ambassador to Nigeria, Emmanuelle Blattmann. It was made during the launch of a project that will last for two years and is known as the Solidarity Fund for Innovative Project, or FSPI.
She places a strong emphasis on the objective of the initiative, which is to pique the interest of a greater number of individuals in Nigeria in acquiring French language skills and speaking French.
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The French embassy will carry out creative actions with a high level of visibility that will be of value to the local population as part of the framework of the solidarity grants for innovative projects, often known as FSPI (Fonds de Solidarité pour les Projets Innovants). These acts will have a rapid impact.
The following is an excerpt from a statement that she made: “Choosing French as a second language has proven to be very beneficial for young Nigerians given the academic and professional opportunities offered to those who master the language and the country’s proximity to French speaking land.”
She claimed that a total of twelve journalists who deliver programs on five distinct radio stations, namely radio Maria Abuja, Armed Forces radio Abuja, I-Flier radio Ibadan, Spirit of Nigeria radio Lagos, and University Campus radio in Badagry, will be trained as part of the initiative. She mentioned that these stations include radio Maria Abuja, Spirit of Nigeria radio Lagos, and University Campus radio in Badagry.
She gave a rundown of some of the limitations and challenges that come with acquiring the ability to speak and write in the language, particularly in secondary schools. These included a shortage of textbooks, limited access to technological equipment, a low number of hours committed to the teaching of French each week, poor mastery of French by teachers, as well as classrooms that are overcrowded, making it difficult for teachers to properly teach their students.
Blattman makes the assertion that “some teachers attest to a limited mastery of French,” and that “most of them have not been trained in the latest pedagogical approaches of French.”
It has been made clearly clear by local partners that they wish to increase their educational collaboration, and according to the Ambassador, the FSPI project will make it feasible to implement a program for a total of fifty schools in five different states. This will make it possible to expand educational collaboration.
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The locations of the educational institutions that she described can be found in the states of Enugu, Plateau, Lagos, and Oyo, as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
In addition, the schools that are going to benefit directly from the pilot program that is going to feature teacher trainings in France and Nigeria will be provided with books and computer equipment to use in their classrooms. These trainings are going to take place in both France and Nigeria.
In addition, training programs that will provide practice opportunities for both children and adults will be developed. These programs will be available.
Data will be collected from 5,000 junior secondary school students ranging in age from 11 to 25 and 108 teachers representing 50 schools in the aforementioned states as part of the pilot study. The students’ ages range from 11 to 25.