Podcast: training French Imams, funding women's startups, journalist of the Revolution

Imams-in-training learn about the roots of their religion, and the specific context of an 'Islam of France'. Breaking the glass ceiling as women entrepreneurs push for more startup funding. And the journalist who called on Parisians to rise up for democracy during the French Revolution.

Spotlight on France, episode 69 © RFI

The French government has innagurated the first Forum of the Islam of France to figure out how to structure a so-called 'Islam de France', or Islam of France. One question is whether to give Imams an official status, which would involve formal training, as a tool to fight against radicalisation. Three institutions in France currently provide this kind of training, including the Al Ghazali Institute in the main Paris Mosque, which trains Imams and Mourchidates – the equivalent for women. For the students, the training is a way to better understand their religion within a French context, governed by the principles of laicité. (Listen @2'45'')

In the early days of his presidency, Emmanuel Macron pledged to turn France into a startup nation, setting up a 5-billion-euro fund which has made good on his hope for France to have 25 so-called "unicorns" – billion-dollar companies – by 2025. The number was reached ahead of schedule, but only one of them was formed by a mixed group. Women entrepreneurs struggle to raise capital to scale up their business, but the Sista collective aims to close the gender finance gap in France's startup world. Marine Wetzel, co-founder of a femtech startup Imana Care (an app to help women with hormonal imbalance), talks about the challenges of getting financing and what Sista is doing to help. (Listen @14'50'',)

Camille Desmoulins, born 2 March 1760, was a renowned journalist and pamphleteer who spoke out in favour of a Republic in the runup to the Revolution and used his oratory skills to spur Parisians to storm the Bastille. He was also one of the first people in France to defend freedom of expression. (Listen @9'45'')

This episode was mixed by Nicolas Doreau.

Spotlight on France is a podcast from Radio France International. Find us on rfienglish.com, iTunes (link here), Spotify (link here), Google podcasts (link here), or your favourite podcast app (pod.link/1573769878).