Program: GS-2010B-C-1

Only for AGB stars does there exist observational evidence that nucleosynthesis of fluorine, as $^{19}$F, is an ongoing process. However, we have recently derived F abundances in Galactic AGB carbon-stars and found much lower F enhancements than previously reported in the literature. This downward revision to the F abundances in Galactic stars results from much improved molecular data and model atmospheres adopted in our recent analyses. The lower F enhancements found places doubt on the real contribution of AGB stars to the chemical evolution of this element. Nevertheless, theoretical AGB models predict large primary F production at low metallicity, but this has not yet been tested observationally. Therefore, {\bf we propose to measure F abundances in extragalactic AGB C-stars covering a range in metallicity and belonging to nearby (metal-poor) galaxies. This will lead to the first derivation of F abundances in extragalactic AGB C-stars, to new constraints on nucleosynthetic models and to a better estimation of the contribution of AGB stars to the F inventory in stellar populations.}