Deputy mayor of Miyazu, Kiyokazu Ueda signs the sister city agreement alongside Nelson mayor Rachel Reese in the Council Chambers this morning.

Nelson and Miyazu re-sign sister city agreement

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The deputy mayor of Miyazu travelled over 9,000km to re-sign the city’s sister city agreement with Nelson at the council chambers this morning.

Marking it’s 40 year milestone, the relationship between Nelson and Miyazu is one of the longest-standing sister city agreements in New Zealand, and Nelson mayor Rachel Reese says it is a very special relationship.

“The relationship between our two cities is critically important and I think it is something that we need to focus on as global citizens.

“If I think about our next generations, to live in the world you need to have connections across peoples, across cultures and across countries and through those relationships we build a world peace understanding.”

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Miyazu deputy mayor Kiyokazu Ueda with a gift of calligraphy written by the city’s mayor Shoji Inoue.

The six strong delegation from Miyazu, included deputy mayor Kiyokazu Ueda, Mr Minoru Adachi, president of the Miyazu New Zealand Association, and members of the Nelson-Miyazu Sister City Association.

“It’s a real honour and for the deputy mayor and the rest of the contingent to have travelled here is a symbol of the value they place on this relationship,” says Rachel.

The ceremony included a speech from both Rachel Reece and deputy mayor Kiyokazu Ueda, an exchange of several beautiful gifts and the sharing of food.