Mr. Speaker, as the official opposition critic for la Francophonie, I invite all Canadians to celebrate the International Day of La Francophonie, which is held every year on March 20.
It is a day of celebration for 275 million French speakers on five continents. This magnificent language, the fifth most spoken language in the world, gives us a great power, the power of numbers, but also the means to build international relationships.
We have major responsibilities with respect to this language. We can write and speak French properly in order to perpetuate it. By being committed to French, we undertake to promote French in all its forms. We should be proud of French and promote French through tangible and progressive actions. Our history, our traditions, our culture and especially our future are amazing because of the French language.
On March 20, let us be proud to celebrate la Francophonie.