YEREVAN, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The 17th summit of the International Organization of the Francophone, more commonly known as La Francophonie, closed in Yerevan on Friday as Armenia assumed the chairmanship of the organization.
The summit also elected Rwanda's Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo as the new Secretary General of La Francophonie.
At the closing press conference of the summit, Armenia's Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan announced Armenia was planning a number of initiatives during its chairmanship, including development of various projects in the sector of digital markets and organization of economic forums in Armenia on issues of economic cooperation within member states and organization of La Francophonie.
According to the director of the organization Adame Ouane, during the summit, various declarations were adopted, including on the budget, equality between men and women and others.
The summit had brought together delegations from over 80 countries meeting in Armenia's capital Yerevan. An economic forum in the frameworks of the summit was also held for the first time. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and French President Emmanuel Macron were among the many foreign leaders taking part in the summit.
A major concert with renowned French singers and celebrities was held in Yerevan's Republic Square on Thursday evening. The event came to be the biggest such occasion hosted by Armenia since the former Soviet republic regained its independence in 1991.
The International Organization of La Francophonie was founded in 1970. It has 58 members and 26 observers which either speak French or have had cultural or historical ties with France. Armenia has been a full member of the organization since 2012.
The next summit of La Francophonie will take place in Tunisia in 2020.
