C T Online Desk: French Ambassador Marie Masdupuy has said French roots deserve to be more anchored in Bangladesh as an old friend.
She pointed out three common passions — fashion, food and politics — between the countries and said that the relationship can be built and developed through those common grounds.
The ambassador was hosting a reception at her residence on the occasion of the French Alumni gathering on Wednesday night, ahead of the Paris Olympics — July 26 to August 11 — and Paralympics – August 28 to September 8.
She said this year is “very special” for France as Paris is hosting the Olympics which would be different from the previous ones as France has committed to make the games greener, equal, and inclusive.
“Greener: carbon footprint has been halved; equal: for the first time there will be the same number of men and women among the athletes; inclusive: we committed to a strong requirement for universal accessibility,” she said.
“You will be able to watch the unprecedented opening ceremony (two ceremonies) on the River Seine and on Champs Elysees Place de la Concorde.”
The ambassador encouraged more students to study in French universities as about 600 Bangladeshi students are currently studying in French universities and higher educational institutions.
“France is an old friend of Bangladesh but our roots in your country deserve to be more and more anchored. This means investing in our most precious resource, the people,” she said.
“Fashion, food and politics are our common passions on which we should build and develop our cultural, business and scientific relations,” she said.
As sports and education go hand in hand, she said the embassy also offers scholarships in a range of areas such as oceanography, animated films, climate change, health and economics.
“Study in France means you get acquainted with our values. We cherish those values and you are going to see them reflected in our Olympics: Liberty, equality and fraternity, excellence, respect and friendship,” she said.
She highlighted the Paris Olympics and said they were expecting 60 million visitors and four billion viewers.
There would be 41 Olympic Venues and 20 paralympic ones. 878 competitions have been planned which is the equivalent of 43 world championships, she said.
They are expecting 10,500 athletes and 206 national committees in the games, which will be supported by 45,000 volunteers and covered by 34,000 media people.
“Those participating either as athletes or as spectators will get a unique chance to experience our way of life, our heritage and talents. In one word, France wants to show you it is an iconic country,” said the ambassador.
