Ivory Coast: Curtains fall on 8th Francophonie games

The eighth edition of La Francophonie games ended in Abidjan on Sunday during a ceremony attended by participants and thousands of Ivorians.

The just concluded event proved that sports, art and culture bring together not only the people within each country, but also people from diverse backgrounds.

The games also served as a springboard for participating athletes, allowing them to reach even greater heights.

“The president of Ivory Coast and the entire Ivorian government is happy to have successfully organised the event with everyone involved. We are very happy for the success which we achieved together,” the vice-president of Ivory Coast,Daniel Kablan Duncan said.

The Games of La Francophonie, created in 1987 at the Francophonie Summit in Québec City, is for members and observers of the International Organisation of La Francophonie.

They are held every four years under the theme of Solidarity, Excellence and Diversity.

The first Games were held in Morocco in 1989.
Since then, the Games have been held in France in 1994, Madagascar in 1997, Canada in 2001, Niger in 2005, Lebanon in 2009 and came back to France in 2013.

After the Games in Abidjan, the next edition will be hosted by Canada in 2021.