SHANGHAI Mayor Yang Xiong presented the Honorary Citizenship of Shanghai certificate to Joan Clos, under-secretary general of the United Nations and the executive director of the UN Human Settlements Program (UN Habitat), in a meeting on Monday.

　　Yang said Clos is an old friend of Shanghai people and played a key role in establishing sister city relationship between Shanghai and Barcelona when he was the mayor of the Spanish city. After taking his UN jobs, Clos continued cooperation with China and Shanghai and supported Shanghai’s initiative to hold World Cities Day during the Expo 2010.

　　He noted that the UN General Assembly passed a resolution last year to designate October 31 as World Cities Day.

　　The mayor said Shanghai will learn sustainable development strategies from other cities in the world through the help of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development. He hoped the UN Habitat can continue to support Shanghai’s development.

　　Clos said he felt honored to receive the certificate and he felt deeply attached to the city of Shanghai. Having witnessed its tremendous changes in the past 30 years, he is confident that Shanghai will become one of the most important cities in the world.

　　He added that the UN Habitat will cooperate more with Shanghai in the future.