Chairman Toshan Nimalasiri of Galewela local government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka was on a business trip in Guangzhou on March 12, during which he paid a courtesy call to the secretariat of Guangzhou International Award for Urban Innovation.

The supervisor of the Guangzhou Award team gave Mayor Nimalasiri a warm welcome and introduced him to all the staff. “So, this is the place where all the magic happens”, said the mayor when he was shown around the office. At a group discussion session later, Mayor Nimalasiri was briefed on the history and development of the Guangzhou Award. He was highly interested in the five winning cities that came out during the 2nd cycle of the Guangzhou Award after learning their profile details. He said that Galewela local government is interested in entering the next cycle of the competition.

The Guangzhou Award is co-sponsored by the United Cities and Local Government (UCLG), the World Association of the Major Metropolises (Metropolis) and the city of Guangzhou. The 2nd Guangzhou Award held in 2014 has drawn 259 entries from 177 cities in 57 countries and regions across six continents. The next cycle of the Guangzhou Award is scheduled to be held in 2016.