New Zealand Ambassador visits Pilsen Region

New Zealand Ambassador visits Pilsen Region

Ambassador Peter Howard Rider was welcomed at the Pilsen Regional Authority Office by Pilsen Region Vice President Ivo Grüner and Councilman Zdeněk Honz. Roman Musil, Director of the West Bohemian Gallery in Pilsen, also joined in welcoming the ambassador.

Ivo Grüner and Zdeněk Honz presented Pilsen Region to Ambassador Rider and proudly stated that the region was ranked among the “Best Places to Live”. The region also fared very well in the “MasterCard Czech Centers of Commerce” study.

Ambassador Rider stated that this year marks the 20th anniversary of diplomatic ties between New Zealand and the Czech Republic. New Zealanders are very interested in their family roots. In 2015, Auckland Art Gallery and the West Bohemian Gallery in Pilsen will co-organise an exhibition that will acquaint visitors with New Zealand. He suggested it would be good to hold a similar event in New Zealand that would present Pilsen Region, and noted that the region has a distinct advantage in that the word “Pils” is contained in its name. He was also highly interested in the region’s current policies regarding vocational education and training. In the past New Zealand primarily focused on the United Kingdom and Western Europe, but now it recognises that Europe is shifting eastward and the European spotlight is increasingly on Central Europe.