February 24th, 2009
HOUSTON – The Honorable Syed Mustafa Kamal, Mayor of Karachi, will visit Houston to sign a sister cities agreement with Mayor Bill White on Tuesday, March 3, 2009. City Council approved the establishment of a sister city relationship between Houston and Karachi, Pakistan, earlier this month. The Houston-Karachi Sister City Association becomes the seventeenth in a network of “citizen diplomacy” relationships for Houston, under the umbrella of Sister Cities of Houston.
“I encourage citizens of both our great cities to participate actively in the Karachi-Houston Sister City partnership. By engaging in reciprocal trade missions and exchanges, businesses and people can benefit. It is an exciting opportunity,” said Houston Mayor Bill White.
“The Sister Cities relationship between Houston and Karachi is quite meaningful for me. I have the special privilege of knowing the beauty and benefits of both the city I grew up in, Karachi, and the city I have made my home, Houston,” said Houston City Council Member M.J. Khan. “The synergy between Houston and Karachi is very strong and the Houston-Karachi Sister City relationship will prove to be a model partnership,” he added.
“The Houston-Karachi sister city relationship is supported in both cities by organizations in a variety of fields, including trade, healthcare, education, and transportation,” said Haroon Shaikh, president of the Houston-Karachi Sister City Association. “We are excited to begin new exchanges with Karachi and will be looking to recruit additional volunteers and corporate members for the sister city association,” he added.
The Sister Cities program develops intercultural understanding and promotes international trade and commerce, economic development and tourism. The volunteers of Houston’s 17 sister city associations determine their own local initiatives and develop programs.
Houston International Protocol Alliance, a department of the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau, serves as the City’s administrator of the sister cities program. Houston has sister city relationships with Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.; Baku, Azerbaijan; Chiba, Japan; Grampian Region (Aberdeen), Scotland; Guayaquil, Ecuador; Huelva, Spain; Istanbul, Turkey; Leipzig, Germany; Luanda, Angola; Nice, France; Perth, Australia; Shenzhen, China; Stavanger, Norway; Tampico, Mexico; Taipei, Taiwan; and Tyumen, Russia.
For more information about Houston’s sister city program, please contact Houston International Protocol Alliance at 713-227-3395 or visit www.sistercitiesofhouston.org.