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The City of East Palo Alto finalized its first sister city partnership with Kolofoʻou, Tonga at a signing event on Jan. 29, bringing together leaders and bolstering global relationships for both municipalities.
Kolofo’ou is the central business district of the Kingdom of Tonga and the signature event marked Tonga’s first ever Sister City partnership with a city in the United States, according to a statement from the City of East Palo Alto.
Various local governments work with Sister Cities International, an agency that aims to foster cultural and educational exchange. But East Palo Alto’s new partnership pays tribute to a multi-year effort called “7 for 70,” which focuses on creating relationships between municipalities in the United States and in the Pacific Islands.
Sister Cities is active in 120 countries, in nearly every region in the world, but there’s a lack of partnerships in the Pacific Islands, Sister Cities International representative Carlo Capua said in an April 2025 council meeting.
“When I think of cities that are just made for each other, it’s like a hand in a glove, East Palo Alto and Tonga, knowing that your city has one of the largest and most vibrant Tongan communities in the country,” Capua said.
Tonga Victoria, who grew up in East Palo Alto, knew the partnership made sense and helped initialize the project.
“Tongans have been here since the 80s, kind of moving all throughout the … Bay Area, but come through East Palo Alto when they emigrate here from the South Pacific,” she said.
The conversation began in 2022, when Victoria was living in Tonga, and the federal government was set to break ground for the new U.S. Embassy in Tonga, she said. It was at this time that she was connected with the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs and learned of the growing desire for collaboration.
“This was something that had never been done before, and even bringing it to the Consulate General three years ago, it was very abstract,” Victoria said.
At the same time, former East Palo Alto Mayor Antonio López elevated the Sister City concept as part of the City’s broader vision for international partnerships, which was supported by former East Palo Alto mayor and current San Mateo Board of Supervisor Lisa Gauthier and Council member Martha Barragan, who sent the official letter of interest to the Government of Tonga, according to a city statement.
Despite slumping revenues and little room for new programming, Barragan advocated to keep the new Sister City initiative on the 2025-26 budget.
The years-long project reached its finish line on a late January evening, when East Palo Alto Mayor Webster Lincoln, Barragan and Tonga Crown Princess Sinaitakala Tuku’aho met virtually to sign off on the partnership.
But while the journey to reach the agreement has now concluded, the work of building the partnership has just begun, Victoria said.
Sister Cities engage in a variety of activities, from community forums on global issues to student and local exchange programs, where leaders and public servants are offered the chance to visit other municipalities.
“Now that the government sign is done, we’re able to transition into more of the community implementation, outreach and the envisioning of what this partnership will look like,” Victoria said.
The City of East Palo Alto is set to host the Crown Princess Tuku’aho and the Tonga delegation in May.
