Friends around the World

Raanana is proud of its close and long-standing relationships with its sister cities throughout the world. These ties of friendship serve to promote increased contact between peoples of the world, leading to greater understanding and feelings of mutual good will. Reciprocal exchanges at all levels of municipal life – including management, education, sport, culture and commerce – deepen these ties over the years to the mutual benefit of each city.

Sister Cities and Date of Agreement

Opsterland, Holland 1963

Bramshe, Germany 1978

Boulogne-Billancourt, France 1994

Verona, Italy 1998

Tainan, Taiwan 1999

Atlanta, USA 2001

Goslar, Germany 2006 (Friendship Agreement)

Jewish Communities

Raanana also places much importance on nurturing ties of friendship and cooperation with Jewish communities and organizations around the world, and hosts many visiting delegations every year. Since 1989, the Municipality has developed particularly close ties with the United Jewish Federation of MetroWest, New Jersey, USA. These ties have widened to include the State of New Jersey, and many political figures have visited Raanana on several occasions. As a result of these close ties, the Israeli office of the New Jersey Department of Commerce and Economic Development is located in Raanana.

Promoting Peace

In 2004, during the height of the intifada, students from the Aviv High School in Raanana and the Al Sadiya High School in Qalqilya created an animated movie on the subject of peace. The movie, entitled “Pace of Peace”, was the fruit of a project initiated and sponsored by the Municipality of Rome’s Office for Peace in Jerusalem and the I Castelli Animati film festival, with the active cooperation and support of the Municipalities of Raanana and Qalqilya. The movie won the “Culture of Dialogue” award at the Venice Film Festival in September 2004 - its first public screening.

The Relationship with the State of New Jersey

www.state.nj.us

Relationships between Raanana and the New Jersey Jewish community have also widened to include the State of New Jersey. The Governor of the State of New Jersey, Mrs. Christine Todd Whitman has visited Raanana several times and maintains a close, warm friendship with the city of Raanana and its Mayor, Mr. Zeev Bielski.

In 1994, the Israel office of the New Jersey Department of Commerce and Economic Development, headed by Dr. Michael Reiner, was inaugurated in Raanana, adjacent to MATI, Raanana’s Center for Business Initiative. The office has successfully negotiated tens of economic schemes between New Jersey and Israel, principally in the high-tech arena. Several American-based companies working with Israel have relocated to New Jersey, in order to enjoy the benefits available through these offices.

In 1998, Israel’s Jubilee Year, the Raanana Symphonette Orchestra represented Israel in several concerts in the USA, including the inaugural concert at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center.

The Governor of the State of New Jersey made a special visit to Raanana in April 2000 for the ceremony bestowing honorary citizenship of the City of Raanana on Mr. Shimon Peres, Minister for Regional Cooperation. As a result of that visit, during which Governor Whitman and Mayor Bielski discussed anti-violence initiatives, Raanana hosted a delegation in September 2000, headed by the Secretary of State for New Jersey, DeForest “Buster” Soaries. Secretary Soaries addressed the Municipal Forum to Combat Violence, and witnessed the launch of Raanana’s student card, with its slogan “Raanana says no to violence”. This card, distributed to all students in Raanana, was closely modeled on Soaries’ own initiative in New Jersey.