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San Antonio outlines global engagement strategy: sister cities, trade missions and priority markets
Summary
City staff reported that San Antonio engaged with roughly 97 countries in FY25, added sister and friendship cities, and recorded 121 company leads and $54 million in reported foreign direct investment wins tied to five projects; committee members urged consistent, elected-official-led relationship building and clearer FDI metrics.
City staff briefed the Economic and Workforce Development Committee on San Antonio's global engagement on Dec. 16, reporting sister-city activity, inbound and outbound delegations, and preliminary foreign direct investment metrics.
Sherry Dolat Shohi, head of global engagement in the Economic Development Department, told the committee San Antonio had 13 sister cities and 4 friendship cities and engaged with about 97 countries in fiscal year 2025. Staff reported 121 company leads in FY25 and five reported foreign direct investment wins totaling approximately $54 million and an estimated 371 new jobs.
Dolat Shohi outlined priority markets (Korea, Japan, Germany, Canada) and said the city is adding focus countries including the U.K., Australia, Taiwan, Spain and Singapore. She flagged recent and planned delegations (including a mayor-led trip to Taiwan and investment missions to Japan or Korea) and emphasized the combination of business, cultural and educational exchanges in the city's outreach.
Council members stressed the need for consistent follow-up and year-round connections rather than episodic visits, suggested the committee take part in trade missions, and asked staff to provide FDI breakdowns by country where possible. Staff replied that some sister-city links are cultural and do not translate directly to trade but that country-level FDI data can be pulled for committee review.
This item was for briefing; committee members encouraged ongoing coordination and suggested ways the council could support promotional efforts and trade missions.
