The time of a summit, the paradise island that is Djerba, off the coast of Tunisia, is being transformed into an entrenched camp. The last tourists who thought they could take advantage of the low season to isolate themselves will be disappointed. As of Friday, when the Heads of State and Government of the 88 member countries of the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF) begin to arrive — some thirty Heads of State and Government have responded — the 35 kilometers of road which connect the big hotels and the localities of the north of the island will be completely paralyzed. Already, the thousands of police and soldiers mobilized are in position, and the coast is dotted with checkpoints, when it is not armored.
In the meantime, the population is taking advantage of these last moments when they can move freely to visit the Village of La Francophonie, a tradition of the summits of La Francophonie that Tunisia has taken up with brio. In Djerba, the Village has taken up residence at the eastern end of the island, in the magnificent Crocodile Park, where 400 Madagascar saurians bask in the sun. We visit the place with family or school. The kiosks of the host country highlight in particular the founders of La Francophonie, among whom are the Senegalese Léopold Sedar Senghor, the Cambodian Norodom Sihanouk and the Tunisian Habib Bourguiba.
Impossible to miss the Canada kiosk located at the entrance of the Village, which is essentially focused on immigration. People line up there to find out about the thousand and one ways to expatriate there. Nothing surprising since, according to the latest Arab Barometer report, 45% of Tunisians dream of leaving their country.
Canadian Assets
“Migrating to Canada is the dream of all young Tunisians,” said Lobna, who came with a friend to get information for her nephew. At 24, he holds a technician’s diploma in photovoltaic panels. But in Djerba, she says, there are only hotels and an airport. “He has no future. Lobna will leave with Internet addresses allowing her to find out about jobs in demand in Canada.
A stone’s throw away, Quebec is showcasing its digital industries, while the theme of this year’s summit is precisely about connectivity and digital. A former Parisian who has become a Montrealer for fifteen years, Charles Sol made the trip to talk about his young company, eduMedia, which manufactures software allowing elementary and secondary school children to check their knowledge of French or science. The company employs six people in Montreal and as many in Bordeaux. One of its games, on learning science and mathematics, has already been translated into eight languages. “We already had a big contract with Morocco, which is why it’s important for us to make ourselves known here and throughout the French-speaking world,” says the entrepreneur. This is a unique opportunity. »
Migrating to Canada is the dream of all young Tunisians
In the New Brunswick kiosk, an Acadian was trying to explain to a perplexed Tunisian that it takes 17 hours to connect Montreal to Moncton by train. Sometimes the explanations were in English. The pavilions of Korea and Saudi Arabia had not bothered to translate their English posters into French.
controversies
But the most popular pavilion remains that of France. People line up there to try on immersive glasses that allow you to visit Notre-Dame de Paris or a reconstruction of Carthage at the time of Amilcar. The result of a partnership between the French Institute of Tunisia and the young Tunisian company DCX, this mobile digital caravan will circulate in the 24 Tunisian governorates.
“As we all speak French, we don’t feel foreign,” says Lobna. A few hiccups, however, marred the inauguration of the Village. Last week, the Tunisian president, Kaïs Saïed, canceled at the last minute, forcing the secretary general of the OIF, Louise Mushikiwabo, to also be represented. Saïeb, who suspended Parliament on July 25, 2021, before dissolving it, and had a Constitution adopted by referendum last summer giving him many powers, is known for speaking French only very rarely and being a warm supporter of classical Arabic.
Also according to the Tunisian press, an artistic video by artist Meriem Bouderbala evoking what could be a female body was removed without explanation three days after the opening of the Village.