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NIAMEY (Reuters) – Niger has suspended all cooperation with the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF), the ruling junta said, as the country gradually cuts ties with France.
The organization, which has 88 members, “has always been used by France as an instrument to defend French interests,” a junta spokesperson said on national television late Sunday.
The junta seized power in a coup in July that was roundly condemned by France and other Western allies. She quickly expelled French troops stationed in the West African country.
The OIF had already suspended most of its cooperation with Niger last week due to the coup, but it said it would maintain programs “directly benefiting civilian populations, and those contributing to the restoration of democracy”.
The organization’s stated mission is to promote the French language, support peace and democracy, and encourage education and development in French-speaking countries around the world, many of which are former French colonies.
“The government of Niger calls on African people to decolonize minds and promote their own national languages in accordance with the ideals of the founding fathers of Pan-Africanism,” added the junta spokesperson.
The National Council for the Safeguarding of the Fatherland of Niger (CNSP) also declared in another press release that it had not yet decided on the duration of its stay in power, but that the duration of the transition would be determined at the outcome of an inclusive national dialogue. She did not specify when this dialogue would take place.
(Boureima Balima report, written by Nellie Peyton; French version Kate Entringer)
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