A ceremony was held in the capital of Turkmenistan to mark the end of Romain Gouvernet's diplomatic mission as director of the French Institute. The event was attended by representatives of the French Embassy, partners of the organisation and cultural figures. This was reported by IIC.

In his speech, Philippe Merlin, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of France to Turkmenistan, highlighted the strengthening of cultural and educational cooperation achieved under Gouvernet's leadership. The French diplomat stressed that Romain Gouvernet headed the institute during the difficult period of the pandemic, managing not only to adapt the organisation's activities to the new conditions, but also to take it to a qualitatively new level.

During Gouvernet's tenure, the institute moved to a modern complex with multifunctional classrooms, a cinema and the ‘Nadar’ gallery. The institute's educational programmes reached 22,000 students, and the technical equipment allowed for the introduction of innovative teaching methods. Significant achievements included the popularisation of Francophonie Weeks at the national level and the implementation of DELF-DALF international certification programmes. Strategic educational initiatives laid the foundation for the signing of an intergovernmental Roadmap for cooperation for 2025-2026.

During the ceremony, the new director of the institute, Vincent Lorenzini, was also introduced. He will take up his post on 1 September.