French Ambassador encourages soldiers to learn French language

The French Ambassador to Ghana Mr. Frederick Clavier, on Monday commissioned a French Language Centre at the Airborne Garrison in Tamale to be used by the military in teaching personnel to learn the French language. The facility, which was the sixth to be provided by the French Government, was furnished with accessories including computers at the cost of 12,000 Euros and has the capacity to contain 30 learners at a time. Mr. Clavier observed that learning the French language by the Ghanaian troops would enhance the cooperation between Ghana and France noting that military personnel of both countries could effectively communicate with each other. He said the first Language Centre for the Army was built in 2005 while the remaining were provided later bringing the total to date at six, adding that the centres had encouraged the learning of French among military personnel in the country. Mr. Clavier commended the country for nurturing a beautiful democratic culture, promoting peace and stability, which he indicated were good values that had encouraged France in its bilateral relation and support to Ghana. Mr. Oklety Terlabi, the Deputy Minister for Defense, said the increasingly competitive world and globalization had made international communication a necessity, saying that �Knowledge of more than one language brightens the prospects of professionals�. He said in a bit to imbibe in the personnel of the Ghana Armed Forces, a number of initiatives such as French competition were held in January this year and an introduction of a pocket-size French to English aide memoires were distributed to troops to enhance their learning of the language. The Minister said since the inception of the centres, over 500 soldiers of all ranks and some civilian employees of the Ministry of Defense had been trained in basic, intermediate and advanced French courses, adding that plans were in the offing in establishing similar centres in Ho and Sunyani. Lieutenant Colonel Twumasi Ampofo Gyekye, Acting Garrison Commander of Airborne Force, said the provision of the language centres had created a positive rapport between the French troops and their Ghanaian counterparts thus encouraging more personnel to learn French.