Sister cities of Toronto

The sister cities of Toronto are special places around the world that have joined with Toronto. These partnerships are called "twinning." They help people from different places learn about each other.

When two cities become sister cities, they often work together on projects. This can include sharing ideas about education, the environment, or ways to improve communities. The goal is to create friendships between people, even if they live far apart.

Having sister cities helps Toronto learn from other places and share its own knowledge. It also gives young people chances to experience new cultures, make friends, and understand life in other parts of the world. This kind of connection helps build a kinder world for everyone.

You can find more information about sister cities in Canada in the List of sister cities in Canada.

Relationships

As of 2024, Toronto has two types of city relationships: partnership cities and International Project Agreements. Partnership cities are picked by city staff to help the economy grow. International Project Agreements last for three years and support projects in both cities.

The partnership cities of Toronto include Chongqing in China, Frankfurt in Germany, Warsaw in Poland, Sagamihara in Japan, Chicago in Illinois, United States, Kyiv in Ukraine, Milan in Italy, Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, Quito in Ecuador, and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

International Project Agreements include Lisbon in Portugal and Matera in Italy.

Historical agreements remember past relationships that have ended or no longer fit current rules. These include Amsterdam in the Netherlands, Wuxi in China, Shenzhen in China, New York City, New York in the United States, Indianapolis, Indiana in the United States, Osaka in Japan, São Paulo in Brazil, Mexico City in Mexico, Jaffna in Sri Lanka, and the State of Maharashtra in India.

Formation of relationships

Toronto's city council reviews requests to connect with other cities through its International Alliance Program. The rules for Partnership Cities and Friendship Cities were made by the council on December 5–7, 2005. Creating a new connection mostly depends on the budget of the Economic Development Committee, which runs the program.

Ideas for new connections can come from city workers, either by their own idea or for someone else. These ideas are checked to see how they might affect politics and money. Then, a suggestion is made to the Economic Development Committee.

Principles for new relationships

Toronto has special rules for choosing new partner cities. Only one city in each area can be a partner, and it cannot already be partnered with another Canadian city. Community groups help pay for visits between Toronto and its partner cities. The country where the partner city is must have a good relationship with Canada’s government. The partner city also needs to be big and important.

For international projects, the partner must be a real city government in a country that Canada has friendly ties with. All ideas for new partners are sent to a city leader for review and are part of the city’s yearly budget planning.

Candidate analysis

When a city wants to be a sister city to Toronto, officials look at the proposal closely. They search for cities that are similar to Toronto, like having a strong economy and a large population.

In 2006, four cities were considered but not chosen as sister cities to Toronto. Lisbon was almost chosen but not because Toronto already has many links in Europe. Manila could not be chosen because it already had a sister city with another Canadian city. Monte Carlo was not chosen because its economy depends too much on tourism and it is not like Toronto in other ways. Montego Bay was also not chosen because it is not like Toronto in size or economy, even though many people in Toronto have Caribbean roots.