Sterling Heights, in the U.S. state of Michigan, has officially established a “sister city” partnership with Ankawa, a district of Erbil in the Kurdistan Region, with the signing of an agreement by the mayors of both cities on September 13, 2024, in Sterling Heights. The sister city agreement was proposed by Martin Manna, president of the Chaldean Community Foundation (CCF) and the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce, in collaboration with the mayors of Ankawa and Sterling Heights, who had previously met to discuss the initiative.
Ankawa Mayor Ramy Noori Syawish referred to the event as a historic moment. “The project will help both cities exchange cultural and historical knowledge and mutually benefit each other. Our aim is to gain more understanding from them and help our community,” Syawish told Kurdistan Chronicle.
Syawish emphasized that this collaboration will facilitate the exchange of ideas and expertise and enhance ties of culture and heritage. The mayor also thanked Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Masrour Barzani for his support in this project.
KRG representatives in the United States were instrumental in advancing the project to completion, meeting with Sterling Heights Mayor Michael C. Taylor and the CCF on numerous occasions to discuss the partnership. The partnership connects the predominantly Chaldean city of Ankawa with Sterling Heights, where more than 20% of the population is estimated to be Chaldean Christians.
“The partnership between Sterling Heights and Ankawa is very important and historic,” KRG Representative to the United States Treefa Aziz told Kurdistan Chronicle.
The sister city model
This is the second sister city agreement that KRG representatives have forged. On September 9, 2023, Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region, and Nashville, the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee, officially formalized their sister city status. The agreement was signed by Erbil’s Governor Omed Khoshnaw, and Nashville’s Mayor John Cooper.
In Aziz’s view, the signing of the Ankawa-Sterling Heights agreement holds particular importance because it highlights the involvement of the Chaldean community, whose unwavering support has been pivotal. As these two cities join hands, the initiative aims to bolster people-to-people connections, further solidifying the strong ties that exist between the Chaldean community and the United States.
Ankawa and Sterling Heights share a number of commonalties. With a population of roughly 80,000, Ankawa is predominantly inhabited by Chaldeans, who constitute approximately 92% of its residents. Sterling Heights also has one of the largest Chaldean communities in the United States.
“This will not just be a cultural exchange; it will be an exchange of business ideas and effective practices for running our cities,” Sterling Heights Mayor Taylor told Kurdistan Chronicle.
The mayor agrees that the agreement is particularly significant due to the large Chaldean community in his city, which presents an opportunity for mutual learning. He also highlighted that the partnership aims to benefit both communities, enhancing the quality of life for residents of both Sterling Heights and Ankawa.
Sterling Heights has already established several sister city partnerships with municipalities in Sri Lanka, Albania, the Philippines, and other countries. Mayor Taylor emphasized the importance of these collaborations. “These partnerships provide our residents with opportunities to explore and learn about the diverse cultures represented in Sterling Heights while fostering a welcoming environment for neighbors from various parts of the globe,” he said.
A bridge
The main goal of this project is to ensure a long-term connection between the two communities, as Dr. Adhid Miri, Director of Projects at the CCF, told Kurdistan Chronicle. “When we say sister city, it is not just a town-to-town relationship; it really is a bridge between organizations, institutions, hospitals, and universities across the world,” he said.
“The big question is how to keep it alive. Many other cities have had sister city partnerships, but most of them end up forgetting the reasons they built those relationships in the first place. The success of this initiative relies on continuity, which requires management, funding, and maintaining relationships through visits,” Miri underscored.
The forthcoming partnership will target three main stakeholder groups. The first will focus on cultural engagement and involves communities, youth, foundations, and service providers. The second will concentrate on education, which encompasses research entities, media outlets, and donors. Lastly, the partnership will address commerce, incorporating businesses, trade unions, investors, and additional stakeholders.
Goran Shakhawan is a Kurdish-American journalist and author based in the United States. He covered news for several Kurdish news outlets and was a former senior correspondent for Kurdistan24 in Erbil and Washington D.C. He has published several books in Kurdish.
