English Speakers' Days

Globalization has increased the need for international exchanges and relations. On the one hand, the reduction of custom duties and the cancellation of protectionism have led to a very free and more competitive foreign exchange. On the other hand, the mobility and internationalization of the job market is more and more noticeable. Thus, it becomes easier for people from given regions to quickly be employed if they have the required abilities. Considering the two evidences aforementioned, we can assume that in this context, only those countries which advocate efficiency and which offer the best human resources on the world market are those which easily get out of the chasm. The other important aspect of this globalization is the obvious hegemony of the English language.

Today, Shakespeare’s language has imposed itself as the official language of the planet and this can be accounted for by its use in all fields of work and during every kind of international meetings or conferences. Therefore, to catch up with the trend and meet the demand of a more Anglicized century, most of the developing countries and even some developed countries have taken the teaching and learning of the English language as a priority.

In the Republic of Benin, noteworthy efforts have been made to learn and promote Shakespeare’s language namely the creation of an English Department in the then Faculty of Arts and Humanities (ex-FLASH) at the University of Abomey-Calavi and of foreign languages learning centers such as AMERITECH, BFLAPE, STIPLE, BALC, BI, MLI, LDP, CEBELAE, etc. where English is also taught. Lately, the teaching of the English language has been introduced in all the other faculties and schools of the university. Also, students have begun to understand the importance of the English language in their academic training and professional life. Consequently, the creation of English Clubs in faculties and schools of the university and also in some secondary schools has been noticed in the previous years have.

Despite those efforts and achievements, we notice that there is no big event which can gather authorities and English teachers and learners in the promotion of the language. In order to fill such a gap and meet that need, Titigweti English Club initiated in 1999 an annual event called: the English Speakers’ Days. It aims at promoting the English language by gathering English language teachers, English language promoters and English language learners.

The English Speakers’ Days are some days allotted to learning, blossoming and showing our cultures. It is held every year on the campus the University of Abomey-Calavi with a massive participation of students from Abomey-Calavi, Cotonou, Porto-Novo and Ouidah. In addition to our faithful participants, Titigweti welcome the members of many other universities and English Clubs and those three days will be real occasions for English lovers, English learners and English promoters to share knowledge and experiences.

Here are the activities held along the way:

• Workshops
• Conferences
• Round table
• Games
• Final stage of the BIG BEAR Competition
• Performances of the club’s sections
• Performances of other English clubs and universities
• Election of the Best Lady
• Trips