Mérida and Sarasota ratify their twinning for new exchanges

Mérida, December 9, 2020. In order to continue the exchange of experiences and projects that contribute to the development of the cities of Mérida and Sarasota, Mayor Renán Barrera Concha ratified the twinning agreement between our municipality and that city of the state of Florida, United States.

Currently, Sarasota has nine Sister Cities: Hamilton, Ontario, Canada (1990), Perpignon, France (1994), Vladimir, Russia (1994), Tel Mond, Israel (1999), Dunfermline, Scotland (2002), Treviso, Italy (2007), Siming, Xiamen, China (2007), Mérida, Yucatan, Mexico (2010) and Rapperswil-Jona, Switzerland (2018).

During the event, held virtually, and before the mayor of Sarasota, Florida, Hagen Brody, the Councilor highlighted that this ratification of brotherhood lays the foundation to work closely on issues of commerce, culture, tourism, government development, education, environment, and gastronomy.

—With this revalidation we seek a supportive and beneficial exchange between both cities that results in greater tourism promotion, information, exhibition of handicrafts and products, exchange of commercial information, professionals, as well as support for foreign trade. In short, a mutual collaboration between our cities, ”he said.

In turn, Hagen Brody, thanked Barrera Concha for the interest in maintaining this twinning that symbolizes a commitment between these cities and their population, at the same time that he recognized Mérida as a safe, cultural city in constant economic development.

“We have a great interest in continuing the exchanges and visits between our governments, private companies, academic institutions, tourism promotion departments, and cultural organizations as we have done since 2010,” he said.

Although today we know that the pandemic does not allow us to carry out these ceremonies in person, we are sure that in the future we will strengthen our twinning ties by shaking our hands, he added.

In that sense, Barrera Concha stressed that having a sister city is a great responsibility because it fosters the spirit of collaboration, work, empathy, and professionalism, with great benefits for twinned cities.

He also mentioned that for its social peace, its culture, and above all for being a city with a good quality of life, Mérida has been recognized by the Urban Competitiveness Index 2020 of the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness (IMCO), which positioned the Yucatecan capital among the three best large cities to invest in Mexico.

In addition, the City Council received recognition for the actions of Healthy Mobility in the Historic Center and for the Participatory Design of Public Spaces project, awarded by the National Association of Mayors (ANAC) last month.

The Municipal President took the opportunity to invite the mayor of Sarasota to participate in the 2020 Tunich Artisan Fair, to be held virtually from the 13th to the 20th of this month.

In her turn, the United States Consul General in Mérida, Courtney Beale, made known her interest in the twinning between Mérida and Sarasota continuing to grow and strengthen to provide better and better results.

She declared that in recent days the construction of the new consulate of the United States of North America in Mérida began, which shows the relevance of Mérida in the international plane, especially for the United States.

Also present at the virtual ceremony were Julio Sauma Castillo, secretary of Citizen Participation; Eduardo Seijo Solís and Irving Berlin Villafaña, directors of Economic Development and Tourism and Culture, respectively; Toni Duval, president of the Sarasota Sister Cities Association; Michael Fehily, director of the Sarasota Sister Cities Association Mérida chapter, and Grisell Gamboa Alemán, assistant to the director of the Sarasota Sister Cities Association.