The Regional Under Secretary of the Presidency for External Relations stressed today the importance of closer relations between the Diaspora and the Azores, defending that "the Regional Government and municipalities should share the goal of establishing a closer relation" with emigrant communities and the organisations that represent them.

"Much has been done and I am sure that we will continue to work in order to enhance cooperation. We believe that the twinning between regional local power and the Diaspora are also important tools for this purpose since they have the potential to promote exchanges in various fields, including the business sector,” said Rodrigo Oliveira.

The Regional Secretary spoke at the end of a meeting with Mike Pagtakhan, Deputy Mayor of Winnipeg, Canada. On the occasion, the government official pointed out that the deputy mayor's to the Azores aims to "continue the contacts established in 2014 during the visit made by the President of the Government to Winnipeg." The latter included a meeting promoted by the Society for the Business Development of the Azores (SDEA) with entrepreneurs from Winnipeg. With about 700 thousand inhabitants, this Canadian city has an important Azorean community.

One of the topics addressed at the meeting, which was also attended by the President of SDEA, Arnaldo Machado, was "precisely the possibility of organising the visit of a delegation of Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce and Canadian entrepreneurs to the Azores, possibly in 2016," added the Regional Secretary.

For Rodrigo Oliveira, this visit to the Azores will allow the Deputy Mayor of Winnipeg to "know the reality" of the archipelago for a "better understanding of the origins of the important Azorean community residing in Winnipeg." The government official added that during this visit, which includes the islands of S. Miguel, Terceira and Santa Maria, Mike Pagtakhan will "develop contacts at a municipal level in order to explore the possibility of signing twinning agreements."

Rodrigo Oliveira also pointed out that the Winnipeg City Hall "has been a very active partner of the House of the Azores, supporting several Azorean cultural initiatives and traditions." In this regard, Deputy Mayor Pagtakhan has been "a privileged interlocutor for Azoreans and he was even one of the personalities that supported the naming of a Winnipeg street as the Azores Street."

The meeting held today in Ponta Delgada was also attended by the President of the House of the Azores of Winnipeg, João Melo, and the Honorary Consul of Portugal in Winnipeg, Paulo Cabral, who is also Azorean.