Oakville's Sister Cities

Our sister cities

Twin cities grew in popularity after World War II, as people looked for ways to establish understanding between cultures. Oakville’s relationships with its sister cities were initiated to promote understanding, cooperation, friendship and economic development. 

Huai’an, China

In 2012, Mayor Rob Burton and the town’s director of economic development, participated in a trade mission to establish business relationships and explore opportunities for economic development with China. A number of initiatives have since developed including:

• implementing an Oakville-China Business Opportunities Forum for local companies
• hosting delegations from China including two from the City of Huai’an
• creating an Oakville-Chinese Business Association in Oakville

In 2015, Mayor Burton signed the sister city agreement during a trip to China. Oakville and Huai’an continue to connect with and visit one another to further develop their business relationships and explore economic development opportunities.

Huai'an is located in the Jiangsu Province of China. It is about a two-hour drive from Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu, and a four-hour drive to Shanghai.

The city is known for farming, including vegetables, fruits, oil seeds, poultry, livestock, and forestry. Improvements in transportation have led to more national and international investors coming to Huai’an. This has allowed the city to expand in various sectors including chemicals, automotive, mechanical, textile, bio-technology, and new materials.

Neyagawa, Japan

In 1984, officials in Neyagawa, Japan, were looking for cities to twin with when a former Oakville resident living in Japan suggested Oakville. At the time, both cities had a mix of industry and agriculture and both were dealing with the challenge of achieving balanced growth in different ways. They felt they had lessons to share.

In April 1984, Oakville Mayor Harry Barrett and Neyagawa Mayor Tadahiro Nishikawa signed a declaration to twin the two cities.

The City of Neyagawa, Japan is a suburb of a larger city. Neyagawa is located about 20 kilometres northwest of Osaka, in the centre of a triangle formed by three of Japan’s oldest cities — Kyoto, Nara and Osaka.

Neyagawa was founded as a city in 1951 and grew to be a suburb of Osaka. Many of its residents commute to work in Osaka.

Dorval, Quebec

In 1957, Oakville Mayor W. Anderson signed a declaration to twin Oakville and Dorval, Quebec as sister cities.

Dorval is a suburb of Montreal. Dorval, founded in 1667, and is one of the oldest cities in North America.