Asian mayors agree to improve cooperation<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Surabaya<\/p>\n
Mayors from four Asian countries signed a joint agreement in
\nSurabaya on Saturday in a bid to improve cooperation in various
\nsectors.<\/p>\n
The agreement, reached during the 2005 Surabaya Counterparts
\nForum, was signed by Lee Kyu Hwan of Busan, Korea; Zhang
\nChangping of Xiamen, China and Li Zhizhen of Guangzhou, China;
\nEva Aguirre Paz of Marikina in the Philippines, as well as
\nChusnul Arifien Damuri, the acting Surabaya mayor.<\/p>\n
Chusnul said the agreement was aimed at strengthening the
\nrelationship between cities in eastern Asia so they could work
\ntogether to improve people's lives.<\/p>\n
\"The point of this agreement is intended to improve people's
\nwelfare as the mayors share experiences in development planning,\"
\nChusnul said.<\/p>\n
Three points of agreement were reached in the meeting,
\nincluding cooperation on culture, development, education,
\nenvironment, science, sports and tourism.<\/p>\n
Apart from improving cooperation, the agreement was also aimed
\nat improving participation among community members,
\nbusinesspeople and non-governmental organizations involved in
\ndevelopment.<\/p>\n
Surabaya's Counterparts Forum was also attended by
\nrepresentatives from several cities in the country, including
\nBali, Banjarmasin, Gorontalo, Jakarta and Yogyakarta.<\/p>\n
Busan Mayor Lee Kyu Hwan said that cooperation between his
\ncountry and Indonesia had been going on for decades.<\/p>\n
\"When Jakarta and Seoul have good relationship, we also want
\nthe same thing between Surabaya and Busan,\" he told Antara.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Guangzhou mayor Li Zhizhen expressed readiness to
\nmake Surabaya its sister city, while Xiamen mayor Zhang Cangping
\nexpressed optimism that the two city's historical connections,
\nhighlighted by Chinese people from the Xiamen area who migrated
\nto eastern Java, including Surabaya, would ensure close
\ncooperation.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/asian-mayors-agree-to-improve-cooperation-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}