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More than 550 business leaders and five
heads of government were in Miami the week
of December 5th, 2005 to discuss regional
trade, development and disaster planning.
Mayor Manny Díaz welcomed the delegates to
the city during the opening luncheon,
delivering remarks focused on increasing
bilateral trade and improving the Caribbean
Basin’s emergency preparedness.
During the week of November 17 - 21, 2005
the City of Miami hosted a series of
cultural activities celebrating 15 years of
friendship between Miami and Kagoshima,
Japan.
On behalf of Mayor Hiroyuki Mori, the
Kagoshima delegation that visited Miami this
year was led by the city’s director of
Economic Affairs and Tourism, Mr. Tsugio
Narikiyo. The City of Kagoshima Gospel Choir
also visited Miami and performed at several
venues throughout the weekend.
This year’s Miami-Kagoshima celebration was
organized in partnership with the Miami
International Book Fair, which allowed us to
reach out to over 50,000 people who visited
the Book Fair during the three days of
events at the Kagoshima / Japan Pavilion,
enjoying demonstrations, lectures and other
cultural presentations that highlighted the
traditions and history of Japan and
Kagoshima, as well as our relationship.
This event was planned and executed in
partnership with the City of Kagoshima, the
Consulate General of Japan in Miami, Miami
Dade College, Miami International Book Fair
and Bellsouth.
During the week of July 18th, 2005 the City
of Miami hosted the XI Round of the United
States – Andean Free Trade Agreement (US-AFTA)
negotiations; during the seven days of
negotiations, over 1,000 delegates from the
private and public sectors from the United
States, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia
traveled to Miami to participate in these
meetings.
Each of the three Andean countries -
Colombia, Peru and Ecuador - rank within the
top 20 largest trading partners for both the
South Florida Customs District and the State
of Florida. The Andean countries represent
over $5.7 billion dollars of trade with
South Florida and account for over 9% of all
South Florida bilateral trade.
The South Florida Customs District is
highlighted in these figures by accounting
for over 91% of all Andean trade with
Florida. In terms of bilateral trade, the
Andean countries rank higher in the South
Florida Customs District than in the State.
This event was planned and executed in
partnership with the Office of the United
States Trade Representative (USTR), State of
Florida, Miami-Dade County and Florida FTAA,
Inc.
On July 19, 2005, the Mayor’s International
Council (MIC) hosted a farewell reception in
honor of the Honorable Javier Vallaure,
Consul General of Spain in Miami. During the
event, Mayor Manny Díaz, MIC Chairman Joe
Sanchez, Miami-Dade County Commissioner
Javier Souto and other members of the
Consular Corps paid homage to Mr. Vallaure,
who served as Spain’s envoy to Florida,
South Carolina and Georgia for five years.
During his tenure, a delegation from the
City of Miami traveled to Madrid in November
of 2004 and a sister city agreement with
that city was finalized in 2005.
Mr. Vallaure is currently Spain’s Ambassador
to Angola.
Mayor Manny Díaz and Chairman Joe Sanchez welcomed to Miami Miss Jacqueline Willis,
Hong Kong’s Trade Commissioner in the United States, on Friday, May 27, 2005. This was
Commissioner Willis’ second visit to South Florida. During their meeting, Commissioner Willis briefed
city officials on Hong Kong’s business and political climate, as well as on the opportunities for Miami
companies interested in doing business in Hong Kong and China. Commissioner Willis also extended
an invitation to Mayor Diaz to visit Hong Kong. Hong Kong is South Florida’s 38th largest trading
partners, with two way trade at over $205 million in 2003.
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© 2005 City of Miami
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