Under a South Australian government bid, the Australian city of Adelaide, famously known as ‘Athens of the south,’ could become a sister city to the Greek capital of Athens.
According to In Daily, SA Minister for Consumer and Business Affairs, Andrea Michaels, has written to Adelaide Lord Mayor Jane Lomax-Smith asking to establish a sister city relationship between Adelaide and Athens.
“Adelaide and Athens share cultural bonds that have existed since the mass migration of Greeks to South Australia in the 1950s and 60s,” the Cypriot Australian Minister wrote in her letter.
“Through the establishment of a sister city relationship, we can build upon those bonds.”
Ms Michaels said an Adelaide-Athens partnership was backed by the mayor of Athens, Kostas Bakoyannis, Greece’s Deputy Minister of Development and Investment, Dr Christos Dimas, and the Director General of the Acropolis Museum, Professor Nikolaos Stampolidis.
The bid would also be supported by the Hellenic Australia Chamber of Commerce of Industry (HACCI), which recently established a South Australian chapter, as well as SA-Best MLCs Connie Bonaros and Frank Pangallo.
In a statement, Ms Bonaros said that a well supported and managed sister city program “between Adelaide and Athens will realise many wonderful opportunities for trade, tourism, education, science, and economic investment between the two countries.”
Adelaide councillors will vote on progressing an Athens sister city Memorandum of Understanding next Tuesday, May 23.
Source: In Daily
