The mayors of Guangzhou and Brazil’s Belo Horizonte have formalised their “international sister city” status, Guangdong media reports.
Mayor of Guangzhou Sun Zhiyang met with Belo Horizonte’s Mayor Álvaro Damião da Paz on 14 October in Guangzhou to sign a memorandum of understanding on exchange and cooperation that Sun said would be felt in areas spanning science, tourism and port logistics.
He also noted that the southeastern Brazilian city’s strong economic base, technological innovation resources and dynamic enterprises aligned with Guangzhou’s development goals.
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At the signing ceremony, Álvaro Damião da Paz said he was glad to have witnessed Guangzhou’s rapid development over the years. He also expressed interest in expanding cooperation in trade, investment, automobile manufacturing, culture and education.
Belo Horizonte, the capital of Brazil’s Minas Gerais state, has a population of more than 2.5 million. The city ranks third in Brazil for industrial output, with key sectors including steel, smelting, automobiles, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and gem processing. It’s also home to the San Pedro Valley – a major Latin American tech entrepreneurship cluster.
Guangzhou now has four international sister cities in Brazil, the others being Recife, Salvador and Rio de Janeiro.
