Marianne - New Government Logo

New Government Logo

Blue-white-red, Marianne, Liberté-Égalité-Fraternité, the Republic: these national symbols represent France, as a State, and its values (as opposed to the "Gallic rooster" or "Light Comes from Me" representing France as a nation and its history, land and culture). Since September 1999, they have been combined in a new "identifier" created by the Plural Left government of Lionel Jospin under the aegis of the French Government Information Service (SIG) and the public relations officials in the principal ministries. As a federating identifier of the government departments, it appears on a wide range of material—brochures, internal and external publications, publicity campaigns, letter headings, business cards, etc.—emanating from the government, starting with the various ministries (which are able to continue using their own logo in combination with this) and the préfectures and départements.

The first objective targeted by this design is to unify government public relations. But it is also designed to "give a more accessible image to a state currently seen as abstract, remote and archaic, all the more essential in that French citizens express high expectations of the state".

This data was gathered from numerous interviews and consultations conducted by Sofrès (a French survey institute) in January 1999, with the general public and government workers. It emerged that the French are deeply committed to the fundamental values of the Republic, and they expect an impartial and efficient state to be the promoter and guarantor of the principles of liberty, equality and fraternity.