TUNIS
Leader of Tunisia's Ennahda Islamist movement Rachid al-Ghannouchi on Wednesday congratulated the staff of Anadolu Agency on the imminent opening of a French section at the agency's office in the Tunisian capital.
AA launched its French service in February and is expected to officially start service broadcasts next month.
"We congratulate Anadolu Agency on the approaching opening of the French section in Tunisia," al-Ghannouchi said in an interview with AA.
"We are honored that Tunisia will be a launching point for the new section, which will address a number of African and western countries," al-Ghannouchi added.
The French service started its test broadcasts in early February, as the agency will launch a French-language service on April 6 as part of its vision to rank among the world's five most influential news agencies.
AA aims to broadcast news in 11 languages by 2020, its centennial anniversary.
The inclusion of French will bring AA's broadcasting languages to seven, including Turkish, English, Arabic, Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian (BCS), Russian and Kurdish.
The French-language office will initially be based in Tunisia and serve francophone countries.
A second office is planned for Senegalese capital Dakar.
AA's French service aims to closely cover investment opportunities in Africa, regional political developments, Turkey's economic and political activities and investments by Turkish businessmen.
By Adel al-Thabti
englishnews@aa.com.tr
