The Parliamentary Assembly of the Francophonie (APF) Executive Committee’s meeting wraps up in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho. Photo: VOV

Under the chair of APF President Hilarion Etong, who is First Vice President of the National Assembly of Cameroon, the meeting successfully completed its entire agenda, with a focus on discussing the Francophonie Community in the face of global order disruptions, a report from Director-General of the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF) Caroline St-Hilaire, and cooperation between OIF and APF to coordinate efforts in building multilateral and united cooperation.
Committee members also looked into reports on political crises in some member countries, the activities of committees and regions, membership admission, and inter-parliamentary cooperation program; and approved the budget and operational program for 2025.

The committee unanimously adopted the Can Tho Declaration on Francophonie Cooperation in Sustainable Agriculture, Food Security, and Climate Change Response. This Declaration is one of the key outcomes following the Francophone Parliamentary Forum on sustainable agriculture, food security, and climate change adaptation, initiated and organized by the Vietnamese National Assembly. 

The Can Tho Declaration calls on member countries and territories to continue to improve policies, programs, strategies and initiatives to promote climate change response, sustainable agricultural development, and ensure food security through promoting a fair energy transition. It encourages the establishment of green financial mechanisms, application initiatives, as well as access and transfer of new and sustainable technologies in agricultural development.

The Declaration also encourages parliamentarians and Francophonie member parliaments to strengthen cooperation between parliaments and governments in implementing common initiatives, sharing experiences and good practices, supporting capacity building, technology transfer, enhancing research, development and application of solutions to promote sustainable agriculture and enhance the resilience and adaptation of global food and agricultural systems to climate change.