THE possibility of having direct flights between Cebu City and Vladivostok City in Russia and the sharing of best practices in education, sports, tourism and maritime affairs were among the areas that both cities promised to explore following the signing of a “sisterhood” agreement on Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023.
The agreement paved the way for the cities of Cebu and Vladivostok to further enhance collaboration for cultural, economic and social exchanges.
Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama and Vladivostok Mayor Konstantin Shestakov signed the agreement at the latter’s office when Rama flew to Russia on Sept. 8 to attend a three-day economic forum which covered discussions including on agro-biotechnology, Russia-Association of Southeast Asian Nations Business dialogue, and the Eastern Economic Forum.
“Through this partnership, both Cebu City and Vladivostok will have the opportunity to learn from each other’s experiences, deepen our understanding of diverse cultures, and enhance cooperation in various fields by actively engaging in collaborative projects,” Rama said on his Facebook page.
Rama was with Cebu City Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera, legal and budget officer Jerone Castillo, city administrator Collin Rosell and Honorary Consul to Russia Armi Lopez-Garcia, among others.
Vladivostok and Cebu formalized their sister-city agreement following the virtual signing of a “friendship city” agreement on Sept. 8, 2022.
Under the sister-city agreement, both cities will cooperate in the fields of trade and economy, education, tourism, public health, agriculture and animal husbandry, water management, transport, creation of new enterprises and jobs, culture and arts, sports, youth policy, and exchange between citizens, among others.
It was also agreed that both cities should participate in festivals, exhibitions, seminars, and other events organized by each other.
20 sister cities across the world
In a text message, Cebu City Councilor James Anthony Cuenco told SunStar Cebu on Monday, Sept. 11, that Cebu City currently has close to 20 sister cities across the world; however, only eight have remained active.
“Among our active sister cities are Xiamen in China, Kaohsiung in Taiwan, Yokohama in Japan, Haarlemmermeer in the Netherlands, Yeosu in Korea and Seattle, USA in which cultural, educational, technological and innovative environmental strategic exchanges often result in these partnerships,” Cuenco said.
“Our sister cities have likewise given relief aid to our constituents in times of calamities such as the Covid-19 pandemic and during typhoon Odette,” he added.
Cuenco is the chairperson of the Sister Cities Commission of the Cebu City Council.
Cebu City has existing sisterhood agreements with Salinas, California; Chula Vista, California; Guadalajara, Mexico; Kitchener, Ontario; Honolulu, Hawaii; Parramatta, Australia; Sabrosa, Portugal; Izmir, Turkey; Barcelona, Spain; and Thessaloniki, Greece.