JAPAN and the WORLD Magazine OCTOBER ISSUE 2015 #Issue 13 | Page 19

FRANCOPHONIE
QUEBEC
Members of Japan’s delegation attending the 2015 French Language World Forum in Liège, Belgium from July 20-23, 2015.
over 100 students a year. Our delegation
also collaborates with partners, including
the French Institute network in Japan, to
introduce Québec’s works and take part in
joint projects.
Finally, the members of the Council for
the Promotion of Francophonie in Japan
wish to offer their support to the Japanese
Government, the city of Tokyo, and the
Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee to
facilitate the use of the French language and
the intercultural dialogue with Japanese
during the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
You recently took a Japanese
delegation to French Language World
Forum 2015 in Liège, Belgium. Why
was it important for you to be there?
What is the relationship/link between
the IOF and Japan?
The presence of a Japanese delegation in
Liège is an initiative of the Council for the
Promotion of La Francophonie in Japan, with
the support of the Global Communications
Office of the Prime Minister’s Office, under
Prime Minister Abe.
We are very proud of this delegation which
consisted of seven young Japanese whose
presence was acknowledged by Ms. Michaëlle
Jean, Secretary-General of the International
Organization of La Francophonie.
Japan fascinates people, as much
francophones as anyone else, and the
young Japanese became media stars. I
had a pleasure of moderating a 90-minute
workshop in which each made a presentation
JAPAN AND THE WORLD MAGAZINE
in French on a specific aspect of Japan. As
for the young people themselves, they had
an unforgettable experience, which means
that there are now seven new ambassadors of
Francophonie in Japan. Quite a success! Office in Japan is to provide support for
Québec’s exporters with their Japanese
partners, to promote investment in Québec
and to support our artists and the promotion
of Québec’s culture in Japan.
In Japan, Québec is well-known for
some of its consumer products, the most
famous of which is maple syrup. How
would you describe the commercial ties
between Québec and Japan? ケベック州政府在日事務所代表、
クレー
ル・ドゥロンジエ氏へのインタビュー 。
Japan is Québec’s seventh largest customer
worldwide. The first noteworthy element is
that Québec and Japan have complementary
economies. The Japanese are keen on
Québec’s food products and the Québec
consumers buy Japanese cars. Over the
years, the range of Québec’s foodstuff
available in Japan, has grown consistently.
In addition to the quality of its products,
I should also mention that the system of
traceability for meat products in Québec,
one that is unique in North America, is very
prized by the Japanese as an additional food
safety measure.
With regard to products derived from the
maple, for which Québec assures 80% of
the global supply, these are very popular
with the Japanese due to their natural
origin, their unique taste, and their health
benefits. It is also important to mention that
Québec is a world leader in aeronautics, in
information technology including video
games and multimedia, as well as in
biotechnology. Products from these fields
are also available in Japan.
Our role at the Quebec Representation
ケベック州はOIF（国際フランコフォニー機関）の
創設メンバーの一員であり、OIFの構築と発展の
ために重大な役割を果たしています。OIFにおけ
るケベック州の活動について、いくつかの例を挙
げてお話しいただけますか？
国際フランコフォニー機関（IOF）は、政府・地域
間の国際機関です。
ケベック州政府は1971年以
来OIFに正式加盟しています。
ケベック州は多国
から構成されるフランコフォニーという概念を打
ち出すことに貢献したことで広く知られています。
またフランス語を国際的言語、
ビジネスと経済発
展のための言語として促進するという役割にお
いて、
とりわけその指導力と決断力を長期的に発
揮しています。
ケベック州の人口は北米大陸全体の住民のわず
か2％にすぎませんが、国際的なフランコフォニ
ーのコミュニティのメンバーであることは、国際
連合参加国の３分の１以上を占めるコミュニティ
に直接参加していることになります。
さらに、
ケベック州はその革新的で実践的な数々
の実績によって知られています。幾つかの例を挙
げてみます。
OCTOBER 2015 // 18