A former Kiwi running a tourist business in the Chinese city of Lijiang thinks agri-business may make a good fit for a suggested sister city link up with Wanganui.
Wanganui Mayor Annette Main will make the initial connection when she visits China this week to attend a joint New Zealand-China mayoral forum which has been arranged through Local Government NZ.
The forum is being held in Xiamen city, which is also staging the China International Fair for Investment and Trade but Ms Main will travel to Lijiang, in the neighbouring Yunnan province, two days ahead of the forum to take the first step towards "a mutually beneficial relationship".
Lijiang was looking to form a relationship in NZ and approached Wanganui after conversations with local businesspeople.
Ms Main said the two cities had similarities in terms of culture, tourism and agri-business.
Keith Lyons set up a tourism company Lijiang Guides a decade ago.
He said the company employed staff drawn from local ethnic minorities "to provide more authentic experiences for our visitors".
Mr Lyons said most of his clients were from around the world. He also works with the Lijiang "old town" government.
"I have to admit I'm a little surprised that Wanganui has selected Lijiang because I can't see any ties or marked similarities. But I guess the agriculture link is a good one."
He said there had been a move to get Queenstown to be a partner or sister city but that never gained traction.
Mr Lyons said Lijiang had three distinct areas including an old town, new town and new city and the administrative area had population more than 1.3 million. Some of these people were up to two days journey away, in the mountains and valleys.
He said the area was at high altitude but close to the equator, with a monsoon climate. The main seasons are the rainy season from June to September and then a dry winter from October to February with a windy spring when the temperatures increase.
"The main industry is agriculture. It's too high and dry for rice, so wheat and corn are the main crops, along with some other cash crops including apples, pears, snow peaches, wasabi and sunflowers. Most people are peasant farmers," he said.
There were no big industries apart from brick factories but he suggested tourism was another area where the sister city link could develop.
"Lijiang is one of the most popular destinations in China for Chinese and 22 million visited last year. A few hundred thousand foreigners visit Lijiang and most are on their third or fourth visit to China, or on an extended."
One of the main attractions is the old town which is regarded as one of the best preserved in China. It received Unesco world heritage status in 1997.
He said most visitors went to outlying villages and the 5600m high Jade Dragon Mountain. There is a cable car to the main glacier at 4500m with an option to hike up to 4680m.
Mr Lyons first visited Lijiang in February 1996 and only a few days after an earthquake rocked the region. With some other Kiwis, he stayed to help, setting up a project to raise money for Red Cross Hong Kong and also founded the Lijiang earthquake relief project.
Ms Main said that creating a sister city link would take work.
"The formation of any sister city relationship with China requires that government's approval so we do need to prove that this would be of advantage to both parties.
"There's a great deal of investment interest in NZ from China and Wanganui is keen to attract investment locally, attract international students and assist Wanganui-based businesses export to China," she said.
Whanganui and Partners, the council's economic arm, has been working to clear the way for such a relationship and has drafted a letter to the Mayor of Lijiang about making the connection.