French Community of Belgium
French Community
Communauté française | |
|---|---|
 Flag | |
 | |
| Country | Belgium |
| Established | 1993 |
| Capital | Brussels |
| Government | |
| • Minister-President | Rudy Demotte |
| Celebration Day | 27th September |
| Language | French |
| Website | www.cfwb.be |
The French Community of Belgium (French: Communauté française de Belgique, Dutch: Franse Gemeenschap van België, German: Französische Gemeinschaft Belgiens) is one of the three official communities in Belgium along with the Flemish Community and the German speaking Community. Although its name could suggest that it is a community of French citizens in Belgium, it is not. The French Community of Belgium is rather not a group of people or inhabitants, but an official institution which refers to French-speaking Belgian citizens. As such, it is sometimes called the French-speaking Community of Belgium. The French Community of Belgium has its own parliament, government, and administration. Its official flag is also the official flag of Wallonia where 80% of its citizens live.
Alternative names
The names Communauté Wallonie-Bruxelles and Communauté française Wallonie-Bruxelles (or simply Wallonie-Bruxelles) are generally used to refer to institutions of the French Community of Belgium [1]or more broadly to institutions which are common to the French Community of Belgium, the Walloon Region and the Commission communautaire française (COCOF, a French-speaking institution of the Brussels-Capital Region) [2]. These two names are not mentioned in the Belgian constitution, and only in a few official legal texts, such as the "Arrêté du Gouvernement de la Communauté française fixant le code de qualité et de l'accueil" of 17 December 2003, mentioning the name "Communauté Wallonie-Bruxelles", and the "Arrêté du Gouvernement de la Communauté française approuvant le programme quinquennal de promotion de la santé 2004-2008 of 30 April 2004, mentioning the name "Communauté française Wallonie-Bruxelles".[citation needed]
Some people may mistakenly interpret these names to refer to the common institutions of the Walloon Region, the Brussels-Capital Region and the COCOF, whereas they in fact only refer to the institution of the "French Community of Belgium".
Comparison with "Flanders"
A confusion sometimes arises from the term 'Flanders' which can refer to two different political institutions and concepts, being the Flemish Region and the Flemish Community. 'Flanders', though not named in the Belgian constitution either, is more widely used in official publications, because the region has passed its constitutional competencies towards the community – whereas the Walloon Region and the French Community of Belgium remain separate.
List of Ministers-President of the French Community
| Philippe Moureaux (1st time) | 22 December 1981 - 9 December 1985 | PS |
| Philippe Monfils | 9 December 1985 - 2 February 1988 | PRL |
| Philippe Moureaux (2nd time) | 2 February - 9 May 1988 | PS |
| Valmy Féaux | 17 May 1988 - 7 January 1992 | PS |
| Bernard Anselme | 7 January 1992 - 4 May 1993 | PS |
| Laurette Onkelinx | 4 May 1993 - 13 July 1999 | PS |
| Hervé Hasquin | 13 July 1999 - 19 July 2004 | PRL |
| Marie Arena | 19 July 2004 - 20 March 2008 | PS |
| Rudi Demotte | 20 March 2008 - incumbent | PS |
See also
- Brussels-Capital Region
- Communities and regions of Belgium
- Commission communautaire française (COCOF)
- Wallonia
Notes
External links
- French Community of Belgium, official website.
- Parliament of the French Community of Belgium, official website (in French, with some information available in English).
- Communauté Wallonie-Bruxelles
- Wallonie-Bruxelles Image (WBI)
- Wallonie-Bruxelles Musiques (WBM)
- Template:Fr icon Wallonie-Bruxelles Théâtre (WBT)
- Bureau International de la Jeunesse (also [3])
- Médiathèque de la Communauté française de Belgique
- "UNION FRANCOPHONE DES BELGES À L'ÉTRANGER", the official website of the Association of French-speaking Belgians Abroad.
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