Both cities are expanding their cooperation

In 2023, too, the city friendship between Vilankulo and Aalen continued positively. There was a lively exchange between the mayor of Vilankulo, William Tunzine, and the Lord Mayor of Aalen, Frederick Brütting. On the occasion of the Reichsstädter Tage in Aalen, in which Aalen's partner cities regularly take part, a delegation from Vilankulo led by Mayor Tunzine was also present. All the partner cities used the meeting to exchange ideas with one another as well.

 On the occasion of this visit, a climate conference took place. The aim was to discuss and align positions on various climate protection topics, in order to ultimately make a joint commitment to climate protection. The joint declaration of intent was signed by the participating representatives of the various partner cities. “We want to meet the challenges of climate change together with our partner cities and seize the great opportunity to learn from one another at a joint climate conference,” said Lord Mayor Brütting.

In return, a reciprocal visit took place in Vilankulo in October 2023 on the occasion of the DMG delegation trip. Andrea Hatam was present at this visit as a representative of the city of Aalen. Among other things, everyone involved was enthusiastic about the exchange project of the Aalen city theatre. In 2023, a theatre group from the city of Vilankulo was a guest in Aalen and performed a play there as part of the closing event. The participants from Vilankulo and Aalen continue to keep in close contact.

During the visit, the completed buildings of the new vocational school for health technicians in Vilankulo were also inspected, where training is due to begin in early 2024. During the talks between representatives of the municipal council and local business representatives, it was discussed how the vocational school campus would develop further. Since Vilankulo, due to its location on the Indian Ocean, has great potential for new jobs above all in the tourism sector, the next step should be to set up a vocational training branch for tourism. 

A student exchange is also currently underway. Thanks in part to the support of the Lingel surveying office in Aalen, a student from the University of Munich specialising in surveying is currently in Vilankulo. As part of a project, he is supporting the city of Vilankulo in creating a land register. The necessary surveying instruments were provided by the Lingel surveying office. The city of Vilankulo greatly welcomes this, since the lack of land surveying often leads to disputes.

As activities are further expanded, the KfW should definitely be involved as well. The relevant applications for financial support in the areas of environmental protection, water supply and road construction have been submitted. However, a decision by the KfW is still pending.