San José Mayor Elected To Head of Local Governments Organization
San José's mayor, Johnny Araya Monge, was elected as president of the Federación Latinoamericana de Ciudades, Municipios y Asociaciones de Gobiernos Locales (Flacma) - Latin American federation of cities, municipalities and local governments.

The election was made in the city of Cali, Colombia, the capital city of the province (or department as they are called in Colombia) of Valle del Cauca.

The post will allow Araya to represent the region of Latin America to the world organization Ciudades y Gobiernos Locales Unidos - United Cities and Local Govenrment (UCLG), whose objective is to promote strong and effective democratic local self-government throughout the world.

The group engages in lobbying and advocacy to promote the role and status of local government in the international arena and to influence international policy making and is to become a major world source of information on local self-government, local authorities, international solidarity and the exchange of experience.

Araya and the Municipalidad de San José has been gaining a leading role in the continent mainly due to its efforts to transform the Costa Rica's capital city into a functional, competitive and a sustainable place to live.

Araya has been committed to projects to repopulate the San José downtown core and to develop a social and economic environment. The San José mayor seemed pleased with the election and said that his new post will allow him to search out better co-operation in the international arena for Costa Rica.