French President Emmanuel Macron interrupted a session of the Africa Forward summit in Nairobi after discussions in the hall became noisy and uncontrolled among participants.
The incident occurred during a panel discussion on culture and cooperation between France and African countries. At one point, Macron stood up, took the floor, and called for silence in the room.
"I'm sorry, but it's impossible to talk about culture with all this noise," he said, asking participants to respect the speakers or leave the room if they were not interested in the discussion.
"If you want to discuss other topics, you can leave. If you stay here, we will listen to the speakers and respect the rules," the French president added.
Later, he softened the tone of the situation by saying with a smile that "silence usually stops the noise."
The Africa Forward summit, hosted by France and Kenya, aims to strengthen political and economic relations between France and African countries. During the forum, Macron also stressed that France is seeking to distance itself from the old model of influence in Africa, declaring that "that era is over."
