The following item from the Addis Ababa paper, The Daily Monitor, was
seen at http://www.blackchat.co.uk/theblackforum/forum37/23612.html
... DZO
AU Calls for Preservation of African Languages
The Daily Monitor (Addis Ababa)
NEWS
August 8, 2006
Posted to the web August 9, 2006
By Dagnachew Teklu
Addis Ababa
The African Union (AU) Commission urged member states on Monday to
preserve languages of the continent it said are "disappearing or are
in the brink of disappearing." Speaking at the opening of the fifth
world's Congress of African Linguistics AU hosted in Addis abeba,
Ms.Rosebud Kurwijila, AU Commissioner of Rural Economy and Agriculture
who, on behalf of Chairperson Alpha Oumar Konare, addressed the
gathering said that a good number of African indigenous languages have
already disappeared.
She didn't, however, give the number of languages that have been
extinguished in the continent.
"As you all know, Africa is home to more than 2000 languages and
dialects. This constitutes more than a third of the languages spoken
in the world and is a sheer witness of African richness in linguistic
and cultural diversity. However, many of Africa's indigenous languages
are disappearing or on the verge of disappearance," she said.
The commissioner indicated that the use of foreign languages for
official communication in many parts of the continent has discouraged
the development of local languages and, there is a need to reverse
this trend.
"The death of a language is linked with either the dwindling number of
people speaking it or the unfavorable external factors which forces
the language community. This indeed has been the challenge faced by
African languages especially in the contexts of colonialism and its
impact even after independence," Kurwijila said.
The year 2006 was declared by the AU Heads of states and governments
as the year of African Languages, which was officially launched on the
20th of July 2006.
"The Au recognizes language not only as a means of communication and
information sharing, but also as a means of crystallizing African
identity and forging a place for Africa in the global arena,"
Commissioner Kurwijila added.
Hundreds of linguistics professors and researchers from various
Universities, including co-organizer Addis Ababa University in Addis
Ababa, are deliberating on various releted issues at the week long
conference of African Languages.
The conference was organized by the Addis Ababa University (AAU) and
the AU Commission.
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