Kinshasa welcomes Francophonie Games with lavish ceremony

Tens of thousands of people attended Friday's opening ceremony of the Francophonie Games in the DRC's capital, Kinshasa .

In its ninth edition, this is the first time that the central African metropolis, with an estimated 15 million people, hosts the games.

Three thousand athletes and artists from around thirty, mostly French-speaking countries, are taking part.

The country was chosen in 2019 as host of the Games, an event held every four years which combines both sport and culture.

They were originally scheduled to take place in 2021, but were postponed because of the Covid pandemic and then delayed again last year because the facilities were not ready.