Daly City and Quezon City renew sister city ties

Quezon City Councilor Marra Suntay (center-left), representative of Mayor Joy Belmonte, takes part in the exchange of ceremonial keys with Daly City, California Mayor Ray Buenaventura during the regular session of the Daly City Council on 10 July 2023. Also in the photo are Quezon City Planning and Development Department Head Pedro Rodriguez (left), and Daly City Vice Mayor Juslyn Manalo (right, seated). CONTRIBUTED

DALY CITY, California – Almost three decades since the establishment of their sister city cooperation, Quezon City, Philippines and Daly City, California renewed their sister city ties during the regular session of the Daly City Council on July 10.

City Councilor Marra Suntay, and City Planning and Development Department Head Pedro Rodriguez represented Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte in the exchange of the ceremonial “keys to the city” with Daly City’s Filipino American Mayor Ray Buenaventura. The exchange marked the renewal of sister city relations between the two cities.

Mayor Buenaventura, who was born in Quezon City, welcomed the renewal of ties between the two cities, and expressed hope that a delegation from Daly City will visit Quezon City in the near future.

“We have long known that the key to economic and cultural growth is the support of our diverse communities. We continue the effort to keep Filipino Americans engaged in our community through the celebration of our culture and connections to the Philippines,” Mayor Buenaventura said in a statement.

You may like: Vallejo, California celebrates sister city ties with Baguio

Daly City’s Fil-Am Vice Mayor Juslyn Manalo, Fil-Am Councilmember Glenn Sylvester, and Councilmember Pam DiGiovanni also praised the revival of sister city ties between the two cities.

Deputy Consul General and Acting Head of Post Raquel Solano (center) joins Daly City Mayor Ray Buenaventura (center-right), and Daly City and Quezon City officials prior to the Daly City Council session on 10 July 2023. (Rey Guarin photo)

Quezon City-Daly City sister city relations were established on August 8, 1994 to promote cooperation in the fields of the environment, human resources and community development, science and technology, education and sports, tourism development, and trade.

According to 2021 U.S. census figures, 33,802 or 32% of the 104,901 residents of Daly City are of Filipino descent—making Daly City as the city with the highest concentration of Filipinos and Filipino Americans in the United States.