Francophone economy

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The Francophone economy includes 54 member countries of the OIF, with a total population of more than 1.2 billion people,^[1] whose official language or one of the official languages or languages of education is French.

The French-speaking world is often associated with the use of the French language and one of the many French-speaking cultures, but it also has significant economic potential, which remains largely under-exploited, particularly by multinationals, private French-speaking groups and academic researchers, who still publish and communicate with the outside world mainly in English.^{[citation needed]}

This French-speaking world represents a significant economic and scientific potential due to the size of its market and the diversity of its member economies. According to an OIF report (2022), the French-speaking economic area accounts for 25% of world GDP, 28% of world trade and 23% of the world's energy and mining resources, which is higher than the Spanish-speaking economic area (23% of world GDP and 25% of world trade). The countries of the French-speaking world also include several emerging countries, notably in West and Central Africa, which are experiencing rapid economic growth.

Other areas where French is historically or officially spoken include so called "developed countries" like parts of the United States (particularly Louisiana, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine), Eastern Canada, Western Europe and parts of Oceania. In addition, member economies of the Francophonie often share similar characteristics, such as colonial history, trade links and common legal practices (for example the Napoleonic Code), which can facilitate trade and investment between these countries. The OIF also provides a political and institutional framework for economic cooperation, for example through the creation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA – also officially in French : Zone de libre-échange continentale africaine – ZLECAf) – a free trade agreement between 54 African countries, including many OIF members – or the Eurozone, the European Union, the Comprehensive and Deep Free Trade Agreement and the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, all of which overlap with a number of OIF members and share French as a working and official language.