Auckland mayor calls for closer ties between New Zealand and Chinese cities

(ECNS) -- Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown on Tuesday urged New Zealand and China to deepen their friendship and strengthen ties between their cities.

"Trade today is becoming more city to city. And it's people to people connections which contribute to this trade," Brown, said at the 2026 Global Mayors Dialogue in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province.

The dialogue is being held from Monday through Thursday, bringing together mayors and representatives from several countries, as well as representatives of international organizations and businesses.

Brown, who has engaged with China for many years and visited many Chinese cities, said Auckland is home to a large Chinese community and has therefore developed close ties with cities across China.

During his visit, Brown toured Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, where he learned that China's ports are not only large but also focused on low-carbon and intelligent development.

Brown said more people are growing interested in the Chinese model of mayor-led economy and that Auckland hopes to further strengthen exchanges with Chinese cities such as Ningbo and expand cooperation in technological innovation, culture and education, and economic development.

During the event, Brown joined Shen Mingquan, mayor of Ningbo, as well as other international city representatives in discussions on three themes: "distinctive strengths and urban internationalization," "openness, cooperation and urban development," and "cultural exchanges and people-to-people ties."

Other participants included Ahmed Wazeery, secretary-general of Egypt's Suez Governorate; Hussain Habeeb, executive of Laamu Atoll Council in the Maldives; Joachim Moyse, vice president of Métropole de Rouen and mayor of Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray in France; and Said Karimi, mayor of Errachidia in Morocco.

Frequent exchanges help bring people closer together, mutual understanding enables people to appreciate one another, and deeper understanding paves the way for shared development, Shen said during the dialogue.

Shen said he hopes cities around the world would build on their respective strengths and strengthen exchanges to expand sister-city networks and deliver more tangible results, enabling cities to join hands in pursuing a better and more sustainable future.

Participants signed 14 cooperation agreements covering friendly exchanges, trade and economic cooperation. They also released the Ningbo Consensus on Cooperative Development.

Among the projects, Ningbo's Yinzhou District and Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray in France, as well as Yuyao City in Ningbo and Errachidia in Morocco, established friendly exchange relations.

The Ningbo Committee of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade signed a memorandum of understanding with the Austrian Association for Advancing Science and Innovation.

The dialogue features one main event, two thematic dialogues and three activities promoting exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations.

(By Gong Weiwei)