AFKO celebrates two years of French language teaching

It's study time

The Alliance Française de Kotte (AFKO) this month celebrates two successful years of operations in the Colombo and Greater Colombo areas as France's official educational and cultural partner in Sri Lanka.

Students learning French

Registered in April 2010 at the Registrar of Companies by a group of Sri Lankan friends of France, it enjoys the official recognition and total support of the Fondation Alliance Française in Paris (the parent body which heads the international network) and also the Embassy of France in Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

AFKO opened its doors to an eager Sri Lankan public in May 2010 with a dynamic and France-trained 22 teachers specialized in the teaching of French as a foreign language.

Given its recognition as France's official educational and cultural partner in the city of Colombo, AFKO moved to a more spacious premises at Coniston Place, Colombo 7, in order to accommodate the growing demand of French language training for children and teen-agers eager to prepare for the ordinary level(O/L) and advanced level (A/L) examinations. In addition to this were also students of other age groups and professions aiming to obtain international French diplomas such as DELF and DALF.

"We have been both humbled and encouraged by the tremendous response we have got since our launch two years ago. The Sri Lankan public is now well aware that the certificates and diplomas and certificates issued by the Alliances Françaises de Kotte, Kandy, Matara/Galle, Jaffna (in Sri Lanka) and Male' (in the Maldives) are recognized worldwide,"says the Director of AFKO Bertrand Dufieux.

Dufieux further stated that in fact their teachers receive a twice-annual language training by specialists coming from France and are thus officially accredited to prepare students for the DELF and DALF, including the very new DELF Junior diploma which will be held at the end of August 2012.

"Two years after its inauguration, the Board of Directors and team of the Alliance Française de Kotte are proud to be France's active partners in French educational and cultural affairs in Sri Lanka", affirmed President of AFKO Chandra Wickremasinghe.