The Speaker of Council in the City of Johannesburg, Cllr Vasco da Gama, welcomed a delegation from Madeira at his office in Braamfontein on Wednesday afternoon, 28 June 2022.
Cllr Da Gama and the Chair of Chairs, Cllr Colleen Makhubele, were joined by the MMCs and Chairpersons of the Health and Social Development and Public Safety committees, Cllr Allan Sauls I, Cllr David Tembe, Cllr Lubabablo Magwentshu and Cllr Solomon Maila.
The Regional Secretary for Health and Civil Protection, Dr Pedro Ramos, from the Autonomous Region of Madeira, was in South Africa to visit Madeiran people who live and work in Johannesburg. His delegation included a journalist from Madeira, Jose Louis da Silva, and two businessmen Agostinho Silva and Francisco Magalhães.
Madeira is an archipelago consisting of two inhabited islands and is an autonomous region in the Atlantic Ocean with a population of under 300 000.
While there are major differences between the two regions, Joburg being home to almost six million people, there is more that connects us. The City of Johannesburg and the Region of Madeira are looking towards developing their information technology as digitisation is the future.
The informal discussion saw the Speaker and the Minister chatting about the differences and similarities between Madeira and the City of Johannesburg.
Madeira is famous for its green spaces and Dr Ramos commented on how beautiful the Johannesburg is. Public health and safety are universal concerns for government and the MMCs were able to discuss these with Dr Ramos.
The Johannesburg coalition partners discussed the ways in which the City could strengthen the relationships with the Madeiran residents in Joburg and how this could benefit the larger community.
The event ended with an exchange of gifts. The Speaker graciously received an exquisite coffee table book, Madeira From the Sky, which will be a lovely addition to the Office of the Speaker.
29/06/2022