France wants to clinch agreements on curbing immigration with some 20 African countries by the end of 2009, Immigration Minister Brice Hortefeux said Wednesday. An agreement is currently under negotation with Congo Republic and “in the coming months I will begin discussions with other countries,” Hortefeux told a conference of French ambassadors in Paris. “We expect there to be some 20 countries involved by the end of 2009,” he added. France has signed immigration accords with Senegal and Gabon that provide for French assistance to help the countries monitor their borders in exchange for their cooperation in repatriating illegal migrants.
