KUALA LUMPUR: The number of secondary school students in the country taking up French has tripled since 2009, said Deputy Education Minister Teo Nie Ching.
She said there were about 15,000 students from 101 secondary schools nationwide studying French as their secondary language.
Ten years ago, she said there were less than 5,000 students who took up the language.
"In Malaysia, the number of French learners is growing, demonstrating the popularity of the language among students in government schools and universities.
"It is the second international language being learned in secondary schools after Japanese.
"The ministry will continue to support the teaching of French in Malaysia through training of new local teachers," she said at the Francophonie buffet, an event held by the Embassy of France to celebrate the French language and its diversity, here, today.
Teo said there are 150 local teachers in the country who teach French in government schools as well as universities.
She said the ministry encourages the students to master other languages as it creates opportunities for them to study abroad, travel and open businesses in various countries.
"We already have international languages in schools and students have the option of choosing to take up these foreign languages or not.
"We know that in a globalised world, young Malaysians need to be equipped with access to other languages, learning French is an asset for the students as it creates a wide range of opportunities," she added.
Also present at the event were Embassy of France in Malaysia's Education Department head Nicolas Gouletquer and Mauritius Ambassador to Malaysia Issop Patel.