Suwon Takes First Steps as 'City Diplomat'

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Jung Jun-sung] Suwon's 'City Diplomat,' representative of the city and the face of Suwon, has taken its first steps.

On the 12th, Suwon Metropolitan City held a 'Certificate of Appointment Ceremony for the Suwon International Sister City Citizens Exchange Committee' at the conference room of the Suwon Convention Center to revitalize citizen exchanges with international sister cities, and presented certificates of appointment to the committee members.

The Suwon International Sister City Citizens Exchange Committee is composed of five divisions: the Citizens Exchange Committees for Asahikawa (Japan), Jinan (China), Freiburg (Germany), Phoenix (USA), and Tours (France). The committee has 16 to 21 members per division, totaling 95 members.

The city selected five priority cooperation cities from among 19 international sister and friendly cities in 15 countries, and established citizens exchange committees for each city. Citizens with expertise in fields including economy, culture, sports, education, and environment were appointed as committee members. The term of appointment is two years.

The Citizens Exchange Committee engages in activities including △developing and proposing international sister city exchange projects △accompanying Suwon city delegations on visits to sister cities △conducting international exchange activities when visiting delegations from sister cities visit Suwon △providing citizen advisory opinions on international exchange projects. Regular meetings are held quarterly, and additional meetings are convened as needed.

Mayor Lee Jae-jun of Suwon said, "Members of the Citizens Exchange Committee are city diplomats representing Suwon and the face of Suwon," urging them to "take the lead in citizen exchange as global diplomats."