Australia's Largest Citizenship Ceremony makes history

Today, the City of Canterbury Bankstown welcomed more than 2,000 new citizens during Australia's largest* citizenship ceremony.

The historic ceremony saw new citizens from more than 90 countries taking the pledge at the Dunc Gray Velodrome in Bass Hill.

Topping the list, were arrivals from Vietnam (338), followed by Bangladesh (239), Pakistan (192), Lebanon (168) and India (116). And at the other end of the scale, there were about 20 countries represented by one person each.

Vianney Ninkeje, from Sefton, was among the 2,021 residents who were invited to became citizens today.

Five years ago, the 26-year-old moved to Australia from Burundi, a small land-locked country in east Africa, and is the first from his country to take the pledge in Canterbury-Bankstown.

Mr Ninkeje said becoming an Australian Citizen was very exciting.

"I came to Australia to live with my uncle in 2016," Mr Ninkeje said.

"And while I was waiting to get my citizenship, I studied and got a Bachelor of Medicine. I've just finished the degree and am now looking for work.

"There were a lot of political issues in the country I came from. It wasn't easy to get a job and there was nowhere to study.

"Australia has given me so many opportunities and I'm so thankful."

Canterbury-Bankstown Mayor Khal Asfour said today signifies the start of a new chapter as they start their new life as an Australian citizen.

"I feel immensely proud to be hosting this record-breaking citizenship ceremony in our City to help 2,021 new citizens, from all walks of life and from all around the world, take the pledge and call Australia home," Mayor Asfour said.

"I believe there is no greater privilege than receiving Australian citizenship – a life-long commitment to Australia's values of freedom, democracy and equality.

"In 2016, more than 60 per cent of residents said they spoke a language other than English at home, and around 45 per cent came to our City from another country.

"In 2021 and onwards, I am excited to see this number grow.

"I wish our new citzens every success for the future and embrace them with open arms so they feel safe and free to fulfil their dreams."

*CBCity's citizenship ceremony is the largest in NSW history and we're awaiting confirmation from the National Office on if it is the largest ceremony ever held in Australia.

LATEST COUNTRY OF CITIZENSHIPNUMBER OF NEW CITIZENSVIETNAM338BANGLADESH239PAKISTAN192LEBANON168INDIA116PHILIPPINES97CHINA92SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC84EGYPT67NEPAL61INDONESIA44NEW ZEALAND39BRITIAN26THAILAND25JORDAN24IRAN23USA19BRAZIL18FIJI18HKSAR OF THE PRC18AFGHANISTAN16ITALY16MALAYSIA16SOUTH KOREA14STATELESS PERSON15FRANCE12PORTUGAL12SIERRA LEONE12COLOMBIA10POLAND10IRISH REPUBLIC9PALESTINIAN AUTHRTY9TAIWAN9CANADA8NIGERIA8GREECE7RUSSIA7GHANA6CAMEROON5SOUTH AFRICA5BRITISH NATIONAL (OVERSEAS)4ETHIOPIA4MACEDONIA4MOROCCO4MYANMAR4SINGAPORE4SPAIN4TURKEY4ALGERIA3ARGENTINA3CHILE3CZECH REPUBLIC3SRI LANKA3UKRAINE3UNITED KINGDOM3VENEZUELA3ZIMBABWE3ISRAEL2LAO PEOPLES DEM REP2MAURITIUS2MEXICO2PERU2ROMANIA2SWEDEN2TANZANIA2TONGA2TUNISIA2UNKNOWN2BELARUS1BELGIUM1BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA1BURMA1BURUNDI1DENMARK1ECUADOR1ERITREA1FINLAND1FYROM1GAZA STRIP1GEORGIA1GERMANY1HUNGARY1LIBERIA1LITHUANIA1MACAU1MOLDOVA1NETHERLANDS1SAUDI ARABIA1SOMALIA1SUDAN1SYRIA1UNITED ARAB EMIRATES1URUGUAY1UZBEKISTAN1