THE council of Avignon, France approved a bill on establishing sistership with Bao’an District on April 25.

Jacques Montaignac, vice mayor of the French area, who paid a visit to Bao’an in January for the signing of a cooperation MOU with the district, briefed his fellow councillors on Bao’an’s history, culture, and social and economic development at the council meeting, saying that he strongly believes there is great potential for future collaboration between the two districts in an all-round way.

A publicity film about Bao’an received a warm welcome at the meeting.

It was agreed at the meeting that the two districts will expand cooperation in culture, arts, sports and economy. The highlighted projects for this year will include the Avignon Theater Festival, a wine-tasting festival, tea expo and marathon.

Avignon proposed the establishment of sistership with Bao’an at the beginning of last year. At its invitation, a Bao’an government delegation visited Avignon last July, during which both parties signed a letter of intent on establishing a friendly-district relationship. Last October, two athletes from Bao’an attended a marathon in Avignon, while three French athletes were invited to take part in the Bao’an International Marathon in December.

Avignon is a commune in southeastern France. Home to a number of world cultural heritages, it boasts the world’s largest contemporary artwork museum. The Festival d’Avignon, or Avignon Festival, is an annual arts festival held in Avignon every July and is the oldest extant festival in France as well as one of the world’s greatest.(SD News)