There is a “Wuhan Avenue” in Markham, Canada, witnessing the sister city relations between two cities. In his well-prepared video, Frank Scarpitti, mayor of the city of Markham said, “I’m very proud of Markham and Wuhan’s established history of strong cultural and economic ties marked by a number of achievements.” Meanwhile, he sent his warm greetings to friends in Wuhan. 

As Mayor Scarpitti shared, the city of Markham is one of the fastest growing and culturally diverse cities in all of Canada, as well as Canada’s second largest tech-cluster powered by over 1,500 technology and life sciences companies. The IT sector generates a fifth of Markham’s total employment. Markham is also home to 650 Canadian head offices and the new campus of York University.

So far, Mayor Scarpitti has paid three visits to Wuhan in 2008, 2012 and 2015 respectively. He shared, “Every time I visited Wuhan, I was impressed with the growth, the transportation system, the broad spectrum of industries and the urban design throughout the entire city.” 

In his eyes, Markham and Wuhan share a relationship defined by four common strengths. “We are open to attracting new businesses and investments. We are fast-growing global markets and we are new cities supported by new amenities and infrastructure. And we have a strong focus on growing our technology cluster to spur on economic prosperity.” He also used Peak Garden as a case in point. 

Mayor Scarpitti also recalled the exchanges and cooperations between two cities. In 2006, Markham and Wuhan officially became sister cities. Since then the strategic partnership has evolved with regular communications and business and cultural delegation exchanges from the two cities to help build and renew the strategic relationship. In 2016, when Wuhan and Markham celebrated the 10th anniversary of Markham-Wuhan Sister City Agreement, Wuhan Avenue was unveiled in Markham. Mayor Scarpitti said, “I’d especially like to recognize the important role of Canada-Hubei Chamber of Commerce in facilitating our exchanges between the city of Markham and the city of Wuhan over the years.” 

Mayor Scarpitti was very proud that, “Our global communities successfully navigated the past few years.” According to him, Markham is Canada’s most diverse community. And the Chinese community makes up over 45% of its population. Local events are often held, including "Celebrating the Chinese New Year with the Mayor" and "A Bite of China." Mayor Scarpitti continued to say, “I’m happy to share that Markham is doing well and I trust that Wuhan is doing well too. And I look forward to continuing partnership between the city of Markham and the city of Wuhan. All the best to Wuhan in your future endeavors.” 

Editor:Yu Wang