Yarra City Council held its first citizenship ceremony in five years on Sunday after the Federal Government reinstated Council’s right to hold citizenship ceremonies late last year.

It was a very special day at Collingwood Town Hall as Council welcomed migrants from all around the world, with large groups born in Britain, Vietnam, India and the USA.

The ceremony was a moving event and included a performance from Indigenous singer-songwriter Kutcha Edwards.

Adam Bandt MP, Federal Member for Melbourne and Gabrielle de Vietri MP, State Member for Richmond were also in attendance.

In Yarra, nearly 1 in 5 residents speak a language other than English at home and 29% of residents are born overseas.

Yarra City Council Mayor, Cr Claudia Nguyen said, “The City of Yarra embraces its cultural diversity. Successive waves of refugees and migrants have made our city home, beginning in the post-war era with our Greek and Italian communities. From the 1970s, our Vietnamese communities grew, followed by Chinese and East Timorese, and in the last 15 years our east African community has made Yarra their home.”

“Today, we welcome 200 new Australian citizens who are a valuable part of our diverse, vibrant and engaged community here in Yarra,” she said.

Yarra Council is proud to welcome its newest Australian citizens to Yarra.