The role of the international and donor relations unit is to manage and coordinate all sister city partnerships, international donor relations and other strategic international relations that will enhance the municipality’s integrated development plan.
Our goal is to use the sister city programme to promote Durban as a highly respected and dynamic South African based export-trading city with a reputation as a reliable base for companies that supply a variety of goods and services to a diversity of markets in Africa, European, Asia, Middle East, Australasia, South America and North America.
Through the sister city’s programme the unit will ensure that the municipality develops a global partnership for development and environmental sustainability.
All Sister city partnerships are based on formal cooperation agreements/memorandums of understanding that focus on the following areas of cooperation:
- Economic development and trade and investment promotion
- Sport and youth development
- Social upliftment and development
- Environment protection
- Culture, arts and tourism
- Health
- Educational support, skills transfer and sharing of skills and models of good practice
- Promoting political, social and economic good will between Durban and international cities
- Safety and security
The aims of the eThekwini Municipal International Relations programme are:
- to facilitate information and knowledge sharing
- to increase skills to improve productivity within the municipality
- to address the challenges of an unequal society, to make this more inclusive and to encourage greater cohesion among citizens of the municipality
- to build managerial and technical capacity to promote the city as an attractive location for investment and tourism
- to develop project partnerships for mutual benefit
- to address regional and global challenges that have local impact
- to contribute to global understanding, human rights, solidarity and peace
The twinning of cities or Sister Cities across international boundaries to support cultural friendship, economic exchanges and partnerships has traditionally been the mechanism for international relations.