February 6, 2003
By Bongani Majola
THE executive mayor of the City of Johannesburg, Amos Masondo, on Thursday signed a twin city agreement with his New York City counterpart Michael Bloomberg.
"Now therefore I, Michael Bloomberg and Amos Masondo, Executive Mayor of the City of Johannesburg, hereby affirm an important partnership and proclaim Thursday 6 February 2003 as New York/Johannesburg Sister City Day," said the mayor of the Big Apple.
Masondo was accompanied by City Manager Pascal Moloi, Mayoral Committee member for finance and economic development Kenny Fihla, director of corporate planning Rashid Seedat and Mandy-Jean Woods, director of marketing and tourism.
Bloomberg described the City of Johannesburg as a lively city that is the cultural and commercial pulse of South Africa
Areas that Johannesburg and New York will share experiences over include health, poverty alleviation, joblessness, crime, grime and urbanisation in the global context.
According to a statement released by the City of Johannesburg, the sisterhood agreement serves as a framework for a programme-driven partnership whose objectives include "attainment of the cities' mutual priorities, mutually agreed work programmes to be reviewed annually, consisting of specific projects and initiatives aimed at alleviating poverty through the creation of employment opportunities".
Relations between the two cities were first established in 1994 as part of a corporate relationship agreement to "strengthen the bonds of friendship, cooperation and understanding between the people and governments of the two cities".
For nine years, Bloomberg said, the people of Johannesburg and New York had derived significant benefits from the earlier agreement.
"Experts from both cities have shared their technical and professional expertise in a variety of areas including commerce, the arts, education, private sector management, science, technology, athletics and economic development," said Bloomberg.
Bloomberg said Johannesburg and New York were important business and leisure destinations that were extremely diverse and multicultural.
The Johannesburg delegation left for New York City on Monday and will return on Friday.
The City of Johannesburg already has a sister city agreement with
Birmingham, the second largest city in Britain. Through this relationship,
Johannesburg facilitates a development programme through the Gauteng
Provincial Department of Education, as well as with the Johannesburg
Development Agency.
Another sister city agreement with London will be sealed in April this year.
