Good governing relations have reached a new level between Australia and Lebanon with an Agreement of Good Intentions being signed between the City of Parramatta and the Municipality of Dekwaneh.
The agreement was facilitated by The Australian Lebanese Chamber of Commerce when both parties made an explicit interest joining with a sister city.
The signing was attended by Councillors from the City of Parramatta and a delegation from Dekwaned including the Mayor Antoine Chakhtoura and Deputy Mayor George Sader. Special guests included Julie Owens, Federal Member for Parramatta, Shaoquett Moselmane MLC and The ALCC Board.
Prior to the signing, the ALCC along with the delegates from Dekwaneh attended a business meeting with Premier Barry O’Farrell to discuss bilateral trade agreements between Australia and Lebanon and building a strong relationship between the countries. This meeting was also attended by Consul general of Lebanon his Excellency Mr.George Bitar Ghanem, The Hon. John Ajaka MLC and Elie Sawma, President of the Building Promoters Federation of Lebanon.
The intention of the agreement is to recognise the contributions made by the Lebanese community in Parramatta and also to establish a level of understanding in helping both cities service their constituency. With this agreement Parramatta intends to promote their city as a destination of choice amongst Lebanese people.
Councillor John Chedid, Lord Mayor of Parramatta stated, “this is an opportunity to share ideas in management and service in both cities and to open discussions on infrastructure projects.
Councillor Chedid also acknowledged the works of The Australian Lebanese Chamber of Commerce and their commitment to Australia.
This process was initiated in 1999 by Councillor Paul Garrard. Councillor Garrard wanted to recognise the contributions of the Lebanese community in Parramatta for their dedication to building physical and social infrastructure over the last 100 years.
Julie Owens MP said, “Relationships like these makes out country strong. The Lebanese community are hard workers, who make things happen to fulfil the Australian dream.
This is not the first time Parramatta has worked with Lebanon. In 2009 a delegation from Council visited the village of Kfarsghab who named their main street Parramatta Road. Parramatta Council gave the residents an official “Parramatta Rd” street sign to acknowledge the relationship with Australia.