Ulsan and Fergana Establish Sister City Partnership
The South Korean city of Ulsan and Uzbekistan’s Fergana region have officially become sister cities after signing a cooperation agreement on October 16 at Ulsan City Hall, Yonhap reports.
The ceremony was attended by Ulsan Mayor Kim Doo-gyeom, Fergana Governor Khayrulla Bozarov, and around 20 representatives from both cities. The new partnership builds on a memorandum of understanding signed in March during an Ulsan delegation’s visit to Fergana, which focused on collaboration in shipbuilding workforce development.
Under the agreement, the two cities will expand exchanges and cooperation in various fields, including the economy, trade, science and technology, culture, education, and human resource development. The partnership will also support private-sector investment, encourage business exchanges, and strengthen dialogue on shared priorities.
The collaboration is already showing tangible results. Skilled shipbuilding workers trained at the Ulsan Global Human Resources Development Centre in Fergana have secured employment with Ulsan shipbuilding companies under the pilot «Ulsan Employment Permit System,» helping to ease the industry’s labour shortage.
Mayor Kim expressed optimism about the new partnership, stating, «I hope that our active cooperation will extend beyond the economy to many other fields, fostering a close and lasting relationship between our two cities.»
Kursiv also reports that as of October 3, 2025 more than 2,700 Uzbek citizens were living in Busan, South Korea.
