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Former Dunedin mayor Peter Chin has been presented with the Magnolia Gold award in Shanghai, an honour described as "a rare event for a New Zealander".
Mr Chin, who served two terms as mayor, finishing in October last year, worked hard on the Dunedin-Shanghai sister-city relationship, heading delegations of tertiary organisations to help strengthen education ties between the two cities.
The sister-city link allowed dialogue with important political figures, and the visits included formal meetings with the Mayor of Shanghai, Han Zheng, and a formal lunch with People's Congress chairman Liu Yungeng.
The meetings were lauded during Mr Chin's term as mayor by representatives of the Otago Polytechnic, the University of Otago and Otago Chamber of Commerce as valuable exercises for the city.
The Asia New Zealand Society yesterday announced the award, which a spokeswoman said was for his outstanding contributions to Shanghai.
Mayor Han Zheng presented Mr Chin with the award on Monday, following a formal meeting with a delegation from Dunedin, led by Mayor Dave Cull.
Mr Cull is on a delegation that includes representatives from the council, the Otago Museum, tertiary organisations, and representatives of the Dunedin Shanghai Association and Dunedin Chinese Garden Trust.
The group will attend the opening of the exhibition "Te Ao Maori: Maori Treasures from the Otago Museum".
New Zealand consul-general in Shanghai Michael Swain said it was a very rare event for a New Zealander to be acknowledged with the Magnolia Gold award, given to foreigners who have made outstanding contributions to Shanghai's social and economic development.
The connections Mr Chin, a trustee of the Asia New Zealand Foundation, helped develop "make a real difference to the New Zealand image here".