Joburg and Rio on mission to strengthen old ties
The cities’ collaboration will help with problem-solving in key areas of common interest.
The City of Johannesburg hosted the city of Rio de Janeiro to exchange knowledge on ongoing programmes and policies on urban agriculture and water resilience in a metropolitan area.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Finance Dada Morero led the dialogue session at the Metro Centre in Braamfontein, Johannesburg. He highlighted the long-standing relationship between the two cities.
“Rio de Janeiro and the City of Johannesburg have had a memorandum of understanding (MoU) since 2014, and the mutual relationship has only grown stronger over the years. The cities have shared ideas on arts exchange, youth development and political collaboration in C40 (network of mayors in top cities collaborating to deliver the urgent action needed to confront the climate crisis) initiatives,” said Morero.
“The City of Johannesburg has had a constant relationship with the city of Rio de Janeiro to implement human settlements, the BRT system and other strategic projects. The commitment shared between them remains in place, and it is up to us to revisit the MoU and strengthen the commitment,” he concluded.
This is how Henrique Silveira de Souza, the undersecretary for metropolitan integration in Rio de Janeiro, summed up his visit to Johannesburg.
“It is remarkable to see the two cities working to build operation centres. This a valuable experience of co-operation between Rio and Johannesburg. We hope to share our knowledge on the core collaboration area, commit to the MoU and help other countries.
“Collaboration with the City of Johannesburg will help us develop and encourage problem-solving in key areas of common interest. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with Joburg to expand on ongoing programmes and policies to provide residents with a buffet of solutions and a better life,” he said.
De Souza said Rio de Janeiro had water pollution and climate change challenges that need collaborative efforts and solutions to guarantee adequate service delivery. He said there are “many common issues between Rio de Janeiro and Johannesburg that should be addressed going forward”.
After the discussions, the foreign delegation went on a sight visit to Newton’s urban rooftop farm. They were also shown the city’s extensive camera surveillance system at the Integrated Intelligence Operations Centre site in Martindale.
Speaking on urban farming, De Souza said, “This is an equitable and creative strategy. I hope that Rio de Janeiro will consider this initiative to solve larger issues faced by the city.”
