Sister cities of Toronto

The sister cities of Toronto are special places around the world that have formed partnerships with Toronto. These partnerships are called "twinning" and help people from different places get to know each other better. Toronto works with these cities to share ideas, learn about different cultures, and build friendships between people who live far apart.

When two cities become sister cities, they often work together on projects that help both places. This can include sharing knowledge about education, the environment, or ways to make communities better. The idea is to create bonds between people, even if they live in very different parts of the world.

Having sister cities helps Toronto learn from other places and share what it knows too. It also gives young people chances to experience new cultures, make friends, and understand how life is different—or the same—in other parts of the world. This kind of connection helps build a kinder, more connected 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 main types of city relationships: partnership cities and International Project Agreements. Partnership cities are chosen by city staff and focus on helping the economy grow. International Project Agreements last for three years and aim to support projects and activities 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 honor past relationships that have ended or no longer meet current criteria. 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 looks at requests to create connections with other cities through its International Alliance Program. The rules for both Partnership Cities and Friendship Cities were set by the council on December 5–7, 2005. Making a new connection mostly depends on the budget of the Economic Development Committee, which manages the program.

Ideas for new connections can come from city workers, either by their own choice or for someone else. These ideas are checked to see how they might affect politics and money. Then, a suggestion is given 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 need to help pay for visits between Toronto and its partner cities. Also, the country where the partner city is must have a good relationship with Canada’s government. The partner city also needs to be a big and important city.

For international projects, the partner must be a real city government in a country that Canada has friendly ties with. The country should not have serious concerns about human rights or other issues, according to Canada’s government. 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 become a sister city to Toronto, officials review the proposal carefully. They look for cities that are similar to Toronto in many ways, such as having a strong and varied economy and a large population in the city center.

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 connections in Europe. Manila could not be chosen because it already had a sister city relationship with another Canadian city. Monte Carlo was not chosen because its economy depends too much on tourism and it is not similar to Toronto in other ways. Montego Bay was also not chosen because it is not similar to Toronto in size or economy, even though many people in Toronto have Caribbean roots.