THE NATION
Recently, the French Nigeria Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) celebrated the French Week at the Alliance Francais, Lagos, to showcase French interests in Nigeria as well as encourage Nigerian students’ mobility towards France. Professor Adamu Abubakar Gwarzo, founder, Maryam Abacha American Universities in Kano and Niger Republic, and a French enthusiast, shared his thoughts with Gboyega Alaka on why Nigeria should make the French language a compulsory second language.
AS Founder of a set of universities, how does this French Week celebration benefit you?
I don’t like looking at things from a personal angle. So I’d rather, how does it benefit Nigerians in general? If it’s about me, then there would be no need for the conference. I’m here because I believe it is very important to promote bilingualism. This is because Nigeria as a country is surrounded by francophone countries. Let me give you an example: If you, as a journalist, are sent on an assignment to cover an event in Côte d’Ivoire, and you’re not bi-lingual, you’re not going to be able to execute it very well – because you will need an interpreter; and the interpreter can mislead you. So the best option is to be serious about learning French.
When you have competence in a second language like French (or any other international language), you get the opportunity to access international jobs, like in the UN, ECOWAS, AU, EU etc, which many Nigerians are missing, due to their not being bi-lingual. Once, I was invited to be part of the screening team at a job interview in Abidjan; a major requirement was for the candidate to have competence in French, but unfortunately, most of the Nigerian CVs we had, showed that the candidates were not bi-lingual; so they were disqualified. Meanwhile, their CVs were very rich, very sound; but that one thing put them at a disadvantage. If you ask me, I’d say everybody should learn a second language- whether you’re a journalist, businessman, politician, student…. This is so that you are able to internationalise yourself. As a Nigerian, if you don’t have French as a second language, I don’t think you can be said to have internationalised yourself. Yes, most of you speak impeccable English and think it’s ok; but it is not okay. You need to be bi-lingual.
Is it safe to say you’re here to exhibit your schools?
No, I’m here to share my experience on how I aspired and became a Frenchman. As we speak, I am French by nationality. By virtue of my being bi-lingual, I have been able to open the first bi-lingual private university in Niger Republic, a francophone country. With my competence and fluency in French, I am able to handle the administrative…
