CHINESE CULTURE EXHIBIT. Consul General of the People's Republic of China in Cebu Zhang Zhen (3rd from left) views the cultural exhibit at SM City Iloilo on Thursday ( Feb.8, 2024). The exhibit which will run until Feb. 11 features 10 major festivals of China and is one of the activities lined up for the Chinese New Year. (PNA photo by PGLena)
ILOILO CITY – The Chinese Consul General in Cebu said Iloilo City and its sister cities in China must have more people-to-people exchanges and cooperation since the interactions were at “a very low level” during the pandemic.
“After the pandemic, everything comes back to normal. So I will suggest that both sides make good use of the sister city relationship and explore more opportunities and possibilities to have tangible win-win cooperation which can bring more benefits to both sides,” Consul General Zhang Zhen said in an interaction with media Thursday afternoon at a mall here.
Zhang is in Iloilo City to attend a series of Chinese New Year events, highlighted on Friday by a grand parade and cultural presentation at the Filipino Chinese Friendship Arch on Iznart Street.
Iloilo City has established sister city ties with Qingdao in 2000, Guangzhou City in Fujian province in 2020, and Wuhan in Hubei province in 2021.
“Wuhan [is] a very big city in the middle of China, just like Iloilo, in the middle of the Philippines, the heart of the Philippines. Wuhan is also the heart of China. These big cities have vigorous potentials, and they have many, many strong sectors. So I think the potential for the bilateral cooperation for Iloilo City and these three cities are huge and great,” she added.
Areas for exchanges that could be explored include agriculture, education, green energy, sustainable development, urbanization and tourism, according to the official. (PNA)
