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City to host Chilean celebration
Chilean National Day – 18 September – is to be celebrated in
Christchurch this year, the first time the official festivities have taken
place outside Wellington. This will be part of the Chilean week in Christchurch, says Carlos
Appelgren, Chilean Ambassador to New Zealand. The week will
feature a Chilean Film Festival, a photographic exhibition titled Rapa
Nui: The Hidden Treasure of the Pacific, a Flavours from Chile food
festival, and diverse activities with Lincoln University,The Arts Centre,
the City Council, and other institutions. New Zealand exports to Latin and South America are growing
strongly and Chile is also growing in importance as a destination for
investment. Last year Chile bought just under $50 million of NZ
exports and services. There are more than 40 companies from the
Canterbury region that are doing business with Chile. The Chilean-Kiwi community’s celebration on 18 September will
cap off a week of cultural, educational and commercial exchanges
and events in and around Christchurch. The city has about 100
families with strong links to Chile. Canterbury Employers Chamber of Commerce chief executive
Peter Townsend is Chile’s honorary consul for the South Island. He
says it is a mark of Canterbury’s growing importance to Chile that
the National Day celebrations have been brought south from
Wellington. Chilean Week in Christchurch begins on 16 September with a visit by
Ambassador Appelgren to Mayor Garry Moore. At the Arts Centre
people will be able to watch during the week as a Chilean artisan carves
a work which will symbolise the links between the two countries. |