A local French society and the consulates from four countries with large French-speaking populations will kick off a 16-day celebration tomorrow to mark International Francophonie Day.

　　Events will include free French movies, performances by French musicians and a poster competition for middle school students.

　　"The local Francophone celebrations this year will be more comprehensive and colorful than previous years," said Jean-Noel Petit, deputy director of Alliance France of Shanghai, the main organizer of the celebrations.

　　The activities are also being supported by consulates from France, Canada, Belgium and Switzerland as well as the local representative bureau of Quebec, Canada.

　　Canada's ambassador to China, Joseph Caron, will speak at the opening of the celebrations tomorrow evening at the Shanghai Science Hall.

　　His speech will be followed by a lecture by Shan Sa, who was hailed as China's youngest poet when she began her career at the age of seven. She left China to study in Paris when she turned 17 and became a renowned French writer a decade later.

　　French movies from Africa, Canada and Belgium will be shown for free on the fifth and sixth floors at 297 Wusong Road from March 25 to 27.

　　On April 1, a poster competition will be held at Xinzhong Senior Middle School.

　　According to Alliance France, the city is home to more than 4,000 French-speaking foreign residents, plus around 10,000 Chinese who can speak French.