Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama yesterday flew to Seoul, South Korea to attend a world congress on environmental initiatives.
The mayor was invited as a speaker by the event organizers, the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI).
He will address a session about “Smart City Solutions” on Saturday, April 11.
A second official, Councilor Dave Tumulak, who heads the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, left ahead of the mayor for Korea.
All expenses of the trip are shouldered by the organizers, said City Hall.
“This session will balance the theoretical underpinnings and definition of a smart city debated in session A3 with real life examples of how this label is applied in practice,” read the description of the session in the event’s website.
The world congress started last April 8 and will end on April 12.
Rama flew in late since he had to meet visitors from Yokohama City, Japan who visited Cebu City last Wednesday.
In his absence, Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella was designated acting mayor until April 14.
“ICLEI World Congress 2015 will have five days of inspiring discussion on sustainable solutions for an urban future. Top performing cities will showcase their most successful initiatives, innovative policies and exceptional results while testing out the wide range of ICLEI tools and services available to local governments. Participants will not only be able to learn hands-on experiences and practical solutions, but also explore Seoul’s world-class initiatives on the ground through Mobile Workshops,” read the event’s program in their website.