On Monday, France's President Emmanuel Macron announced a "noticeable reduction" in the presence of French forces in Africa after withdrawing from Mali and Burkina Faso after years of fighting against jihadists there.
"The change will happen in the coming months with a noticeable reduction of our numbers and a greater presence in these bases of our African partners," Macron said ahead of a four-nation African tour.
This "reorganisation... does not intend to be a withdrawal", he added.
"We will remain but with a reduced footprint... We will do more training, more equipping and better accompanying" of local troops according to their needs, the president noted.
He added that some bases will become training academies while others will become "partner" bases.
Macron said they would adapt to less French military personnel on the ground, and an "Africanisation" of their staff.
According to Macron, they would see "a rise in the presence of their African partners according to goals defined" by these partners.
The anti-French sentiment is rising in the former French colonies of Mali and Burkina Faso after the military coups there that led to repercussions with Paris and the withdrawal of French forces from both countries.
Macron heads on a four-country tour of Central African countries from Wednesday as Paris seeks to counter growing Chinese and Russian influence on the continent.
He will visit Gabon for an environmental summit, followed by Angola, then the Republic of the Congo, or Congo-Brazzaville, and finally the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo.
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