HONOLULU — Honolulu and Sakai, Japan officially became sister cities on Nov. 11, 2021, during a virtual signing ceremony between the two cities. 

On Monday, Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi and Sakai Mayor Masahiro Hashimoto met at Honolulu Hale to sign an agreement in-person.  

As sister cities, Honolulu and Sakai have a special relationship and economic ties. 

“I say to you, very sincerely, anything that we can do to help our respective cities in our economic growth, in cultural exchange, I am most interested in doing,” Blangiardi said Monday.

During the signing ceremony, Hashimoto described Sakai City as much smaller than Honolulu. It has a population of about 800,000. 

While in Honolulu, Hashimoto said he visited Mid-Pacific Institute to see how they are operating the school. Next year, 10 students from Aliamanu Middle School will travel to Sakai to do a homestay and study at a local school. 

Sakai is known for having the largest firework display in Japan. Hashimoto said the city is paying for a fireworks show that will be put on by Royal Cosmetics in Honolulu on June 4, 2023. 

Michelle Broder Van Dyke covers the Hawaiian Islands for Spectrum News Hawaii. Email her ideas and feedback at michelle.brodervandyke@charter.com.