Saturday Dec 14, 2024
Saturday Dec 14, 2024
Saturday, 11 June 2022 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
From left: Ambassador of France to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Eric Lavertu, Foreign Affairs Ministry Secretary Aruni Wijewardena and Alliance Française Director Bruno Duparc
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From left: Alliance Française President Janaka Basuriya, Ambassador of France to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Eric Lavertu, Foreign Affairs Ministry Secretary Aruni Wijewardena and Alliance Française Director Bruno Duparc
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Alliance Française de Colombo last week returned to its historical premises at 11, Barnes Place, Colombo 7.
The Ambassador of France to Sri Lanka Eric Lavertu participated at the official reopening. The ceremony was conducted by Alliance Française Director Bruno Duparc and attended by over 100 distinguished guests. Foreign Affairs Ministry Secretary Aruni Wijewardena who is a former student of the Alliance Française was the Chief Guest of the reopening.
The Ambassador in his allocution emphasised the long journey which led to the recuperation of the historical premise of the Alliance Française after 12 years in exile, and commended its important role in building cultural bridges between our two countries. In Colombo, the Alliance Française is now experiencing a brand new start after the entire renovation of its historical building: new cultural spaces, new classrooms and a fully refurbished library (16,000 books await its visitors).
The story of Alliance Française started some 139 years ago, in 1883 in Paris, under the patronage, among others Louis Pasteur and Jules Verne. Since then, the Alliance Française network never ceased to expand, and today, counts 830 Alliances Françaises established in 135 countries.
In Sri Lanka, the first Alliance Française was founded in Colombo in 1955 (then known as Alliance Française de Ceylan), followed by the Alliance Française de Kandy (1967), Alliance Française de Jaffna (1975), Alliance Française de Matara (1997) and Alliance Française de Malé (Maldives) in 2006. The city of Galle also hosts a branch of Alliance Française attached to its Matara Center.
Alliance Française resumes its operation in the best conditions as a French language institute, an official examination centre for French tests and diplomas (TEF, DELF-DALF), a multimedia library, a Campus France agency to propose higher education degrees in France, and a cultural centre where cinema, exhibitions, conferences, concerts will be held to enhance the promotion of the French language and the cultural dialogue between France and Sri Lanka.
