Gwangju City and Qingdao City, China, Sign 'Sister City Agreement'

Strengthening Networks in Economic and Tourism Exchanges

Gwang Kwangwan, Deputy Mayor of Gwangju, took a commemorative photo with attendees after signing the "Sister City Cooperation Agreement" at Qingdao City Hall, China, on the 21st. Provided by Gwangju City

On the 22nd, Gwangju City announced that it signed a "Sister City Cooperation Agreement" with Qingdao City, Shandong Province, China, at Qingdao City Hall on the 21st.

This is the first exchange agreement with a Chinese local city in seven years since the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Yancheng City, Jiangsu Province in 2017. With this, the number of local governments with which Gwangju has international exchange agreements has increased to 7 cities in 5 sister countries and 18 cities in 10 friendly cooperation countries.

The Gwangju delegation, led by Deputy Mayor Ko Gwang-wan, signed the "Sister City Cooperation Agreement" with Qingdao City and agreed to exchange and cooperate in various fields such as economy and tourism.

Qingdao is the largest industrial city in Shandong Province with a population of 10.37 million. It has developed industries such as home appliances and new energy along with Asia's largest smart factory, making active economic exchanges with Gwangju companies expected. Additionally, due to its geographical proximity to South Korea and numerous flight routes, active civil and government exchanges in various fields such as culture, tourism, education, and youth are anticipated in the future.

Deputy Mayor Ko Gwang-wan said at the signing ceremony, "Through the sister city agreement, I hope Gwangju and Qingdao will open channels of exchange as close friends and partners in various areas," adding, "I hope the two cities will communicate and cooperate broadly on common interests and future visions to walk together on the path of mutual growth and prosperity."

Jiao En, Deputy Mayor of Qingdao City, stated, "Since the two cities are geographically close, I hope we will become even closer in the future," and added, "I look forward to actively discovering and promoting various cooperative projects for the development of both cities."

Meanwhile, prior to visiting Qingdao City, the Gwangju delegation attended the "18th Korea-China Local Government Exchange Meeting" held in Hangzhou on the 20th, working to strengthen the international network of local governments in both countries.

At the opening ceremony, Deputy Mayor Ko said, "Thanks to the participation of 143 Chinese local government officials from 40 cities at the Korea-China-Japan Local Government Exchange Meeting held in Gwangju last month, the event was successfully concluded," emphasizing, "Let us strengthen the administrative network of world cities and seek new paths of cooperation to accelerate a future of mutual prosperity."

At the event, Deputy Mayor Ko met with Lu Shan, Vice Governor of Zhejiang Provincial People's Government, Xing Yuchun, Deputy Director of the Foreign Affairs Management Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Tu Hongzhe, Deputy Director of the Foreign Affairs Office of Guangzhou Municipal People's Government, promoting Gwangju's policies and industries and discussing ways to enhance exchange and cooperation with China.