Examining Economic Significance of Sister City Networks: A Perspective of Newcastle and City of uMhlathuze, South Africa

Traditionally, sister city partnerships were understood as a platform to engage certain communities in mutual social and cultural exchanges. However, studies have revealed the probability of having an economic impact amongst sister cities. The sister city concept, which is referred to as' twin cities or town 'in most parts of Europe, is a' modern 'concept in different literature from social science to economics. The purpose of this article is to examine the economic value of sister cities, with particular attention to those from the global north and global south. The identified KwaZulu-Natal cities for this article are Newcastle and the City of uMhlathuze. This article employed qualitative research procedures. Primary data was collected through semi-structured interviews with representatives from both Newcastle Local Municipality and the City of uMhlathuze. Moreover, the article employed a secondary data approach and reviewed a number of documents sourced from different organisations. The central place-to-central flow theory is applied to understand why global cities connect. The findings from the cities of uMhlathuze, Newcastle and Trade and Industry KwaZulu-Natal (TIKZN) show that the sister city partnerships have not yielded any economic value in these cities. In the case of Newcastle, respondents indicate that there was a Newcastle of the World summit held in Newcastle (South Africa), but that did not bring any trade or investment to the city. In the case of the City of uMhlathuze, it is not clear how the sister city relationship with Milwaukee started and there is no evidence of any interaction, such as a visit from both cities. TIKZN, as an agency that promotes and facilitates investment in KwaZulu-Natal province, does not have any concrete information on projects or programs that materialized due to sister city partnerships.