Sister city since: November 10, 1995

Overview

Nestled in the northern part of New Zealand’s South Island, Nelson is the geographical center of the country, facing the capital city Wellington to its north from a far distance across the Tasman Bay and Cook Strait. Home to more than 50,000 people as of 2022, the 497-square-kilometer city is composed of varied peoples since most of the residents are the descendants of immigrants from Britain and other European countries while Maori people are the aboriginals. Nelson is warm year-round. It also boasts well-developed transport networks including airways and maritime routes. The main industries are tourism, forestry, fisheries, animal husbandry, gardening, aviation transportation, automobile assembly, processing, information, and services.

Relations with Huangshi

In terms of personnel exchanges, 15 delegation visits have been made between the two sides since May 1994 mainly in the fields of economy, trade, education, culture, and sports.

With regard to education exchanges, Huangshi Tuanchengshan Experimental School and Huangshi Third Middle School have established sister ties with Nelson Victory School and Nelson College for Girls respectively. Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology and Hubei Polytechnic University are working together on a joint undergraduate program on visual communication design. With the approval of the Ministry of Education of China, enrollment began in 2013, with a planned annual enrollment of 60 students. There are currently 219 students in the program.

In honor of the friendly relations, Nelson built an exquisite Ming-Qing Dynasty style Huangshi Garden in the city’s Queen’s Gardens.

In the last two years, the two sides remained in contacts amid the Covid pandemic.