Many people talk about how Auckland has to be an international city, but what does that mean? In part it means our city needs to build relationships with different countries, cities and businesses around the world. And councils have a part to play in developing those connections.

The new Auckland Council will need to build on current councils already strong international relationships. Indeed if I am elected mayor of Auckland I’ll be looking to put an international strategy in place that tells the world – Auckland is a great place to live, work, play, learn and invest.

Let’s look at the policy objectives of our international linkages:

Civic – demonstrating Auckland as a vibrant and diverse global city. We need to be recognised internationally as a committed, responsible and active member of the global community. Overseas links are established and leveraged to raise the profile of the Auckland brand, as well as to improve organisational and business capability.

Economic – our city benefits economically from global partnerships. Auckland’s international partnerships help businesses fast track their entry or expansion into overseas markets. The partnerships are utilised in the attraction of inwards investment, tourism and education.

Cultural – Auckland’s communities are strengthened through greater understanding and appreciation of different cultures. International relationships create opportunities for Aucklanders to share experiences with other cultures. These include education, arts, youth and sports activities.

During my time as mayor I have been involved in a trade delegation to the South Pacific that delivered tens of millions of dollars of new contracts to businesses in our city

Currently I am travelling to Utsunomiya, Japan, which is the only city Manukau has a sister-city relationship with. We have now been partners for 27 years. The first delegation visited Utsunomiya from Manukau City in September 1982 and included Sir Lloyd Elsmore, members of the Manukau City Council, and citizens of Manukau City. The visits were carried out on the principle of “home stay” in both cities and the mainstay of the relationship has been the regular student exchanges that are carried out between the cities each year.

Cultural, sporting, and music groups from both cities have also visited each other, especially in the early years. Those delegations saw around 50-60 people in each delegation. Some may attack me for continuing this relationship – so in the interests of openness our delegation includes Manukau CEO Leigh Auton, the mayoress and two council officers, totalling approximately $16,000 (economy flights and some expenses).

I have been open about my travel – having talked about it in my Letter to Manukau and after our Policy & Activities committee endorsed the exchange. Overall around 10,000 people from both cities have been involved in the relationship. As mayor I haven’t met with our sister city yet. As we transition into the new Auckland Council it was important to make contact and discuss our future.

Manukau’s relationship with Utsunomiya links us to New Zealand’s third largest export destination and fourth largest trading partner overall. Our relationship has been based on cultural exchange with the city and I hope to develop stronger economic links with the city.

The Auckland region has 30 international partnerships. The new Auckland Council will be in a unique position to leverage these relationships and put our city on the international map. Auckland City Council undertook a study that showed about $55 million of GDP is added annually to Auckland’s economy from their relationships alone – and we have a chance to build on that. The cost of our travel is far outweighed by the benefits we get back.

People from around the world are interested in our local government amalgamation and we will need to reach out to investors around the world to demonstrate our city’s new confidence.

John Key put it best in a speech called Making Auckland Greater:

“New Zealand needs Auckland to do well. All Kiwis stand to gain from a world-class city…Not only must Auckland be very local, but it must be very national, and very international. And these objectives should be reflected in the way the city is run.”

As mayor I’m proud to present our confident face to the world.