Mayor Tim Kelly on April 16 officially welcomed Accra, Ghana as Chattanooga’s first African sister city. The signing ceremony was held virtually with Mayor Elizabeth K. T. Sackey, the first woman to serve as mayor of Accra, and Kanika Wellington-Jones, vice president of the Sister City Association of Chattanooga.
Sister city relationships are voluntary diplomatic partnerships between two communities in two countries, usually focused on cultural exchange. The relationship is officially recognized after the highest elected or appointed official from both communities sign off on an agreement to become sister cities. Sister city programming and logistic work is done primarily by engaged citizens on a volunteer basis.
Chattanooga’s economy has increasingly benefited from international relationships, notably with Volkswagen but also BASF, GE Appliances, and Komatsu. Accra joins Chattanooga’s other sister cities: Wuxi, China; Hamm, Germany; Wolfsburg, Germany; Givatayim, Israel; Nizhnii Tagil, Russia and Tono, Japan.