Qatar praised for pivotal role in teaching Arabic in France

President of the Arab World Institute in Paris Jack Lang has hailed Qatar for playing a pivotal role in teaching Arabic in France.
In an exclusive interview with Qatar News Agency (QNA), Lang, who served as Minister of Culture and Minister of Education in the government of former president Francois Mitterrand, said the Institute seeks to deepen and develop co-operation relations with Qatar, through activities, shows and exhibitions that highlight the rich cultural heritage of Doha and celebrate Qatari creators in all fields.
In this context, he noted the last co-operation between the institute and Qatar was signing an agreement to encourage the teaching of Arabic and its dissemination in France about a year ago.
Lang praised the role carried out by Qatar and its pivotal contribution to supporting culture and encouraging learning Arabic at the Institute and in France, through the Qatari embassy in Paris.
He noted that Qatar had a strong presence at the Gulf Film Festival, and in several plastic and art exhibitions, adding the special collection of plastic art in the Arab World Institute Museum includes a distinguished selection of the Qatari artist Youssef Ahmed’s works.
He added the Institute organised, in co-operation with the Doha Film Institute at the end of 2021, a special night showing a group of Qatari short films in the presence of most of their directors.
Lang indicated that Qatari sports had a special presence in the huge exhibition held by the Arab World Institute on sports and football in the Arab world, which displayed designs of the Qatari stadiums that hosted the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
He noted that the Institute organised, in co-operation with the Qatari diplomatic bodies in France, the Year of Qatar at the Institute and in France, to highlight the Qatari history, heritage and culture.
This partnership and events witnessed great success and turnout from the public eager to discover the hidden aspects of the distinctive culture of the Arab Gulf state, Lang said, expressing the Institute’s welcome for co-operation agreements and proposals by Qataris to highlight their heritage and culture within the activities of the Arab World Institute in Paris.
Lang hailed Qatar’s great role and its effective contribution to the establishment of the Museum of Contemporary Islamic Art at the Arab World Institute in Paris, through the prominent role carried out by HE Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of Qatar Museums, in supporting the museum by all means.
He expressed fascination at what he described as an “urban revolution” in the infrastructure in Qatar.
He pointed to the impressive success achieved by Doha in organising the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, stressing that this success was on all sports, engineering, media and culture levels.
Lang was appointed President of the Arab World Institute in Paris by French President Francois Hollande in 2013.
Over the term of his presidency, the Institute has witnessed a quantum leap and a great movement, and has overcome its financial crisis.
Regarding the institute’s future policy and the most important activities, Lang pointed to many major projects, activities and events, including the major exhibition that the Institute will organise in May under the title “What Palestine Offers to the World” which will celebrate Palestine, its culture, history and cause.
He underlined that the symbolic title of the exhibition carries a special message from the organising authority to uphold the Palestinian culture, heritage and creativity in all its colours and characteristics, and will blend the historical side with the contemporary artistic side.
Lang also noted that the Institute will also shed light on Gaza and what it suffers from siege and marginalisation, and will ensure the attendance of artistic and cultural figures from Gaza.
He disclosed that he will visit Gaza Strip and the West Bank soon to put the final touches to this great event and give the Palestinian cause the status it deserves.
He also said that the institute is organise, with the school entry next fall, another event that celebrates contemporary Arab plastic art from all schools and trends, and all Arab countries will be represented by their culture, heritage and customs.
Lang is among the French intellectuals who defend the Arabic language and the need for its presence in the school and cultural milieu.
In this context, he published in 2020 the book The Arabic Language...a Treasure of France, in which he sheds light on the depth of the Arabic language, its history and its distinguished position, past and present.
Despite the value of this book, and the value of the voices defending the Arabic language, this language still has not gained its fortune, and this treasure is still hidden, marginalised and forgotten in France, in the opinion of some.
In this context, the former academic and law professor explained that France is historically linked to the Arab world, whether in the positive, cultural, civilised sense or in the negative, colonial sense, pointing out that the Arabic language is one of the important cultural links between Paris and the Arabs, stressing at the same time, however, when he was a minister, he encouraged the teaching of Arabic in French schools, despite all the obstacles he encountered.
He explained that he noticed, during his assumption of his ministerial duties, that the problem in France does not lie only in the Arabic language, but rather in the rest of the foreign languages, such as German, Italian and Spanish, which also remained marginalised, indicating that the Arabic language today is taught in many French institutes and schools, but there is a problem of continuity that it suffers from, which repels some pupils and students from learning it, despite their attachment to it. He said that France has signed co-operation agreements in recent years with Maghreb countries to recruit qualified Arabic language teachers, within the framework of encouraging the intensification of continuity in learning this beautiful language.
Lang said that since assuming the presidency of the Institute, he has been keen to take care of the Arabic language, noting that he has developed Arabic language certification that is taught at the Institute, and this certificate is recognised by France, Europe and internationally.
He said that what gives cause for optimism is the great interest in recent years to learn, study and delve into Arabic in French universities and higher institutes, indicating that the certification created by the institute will encourage this enthusiasm for learning Arabic.
Lang also appreciated the pivotal and major role played by Qatar, through the agreement signed by the Institute with it, in encouraging the learning of Arabic at the Institute and in France.