New citizens sworn in at Wodonga's Australia Day ceremony

The group of 31 stood in front of a 800-strong crowd at Willow Park, Wodonga, and, after the 8.30am ceremony, chatted and relaxed with their new Australian mates.

"I'm one day old," a beaming Kalwindi Mbele joked as he embraced his wife Honorina Naomba and children.

His smile, however, faded as the pastor recalled the treacherous, often frustrating, journey from his home country, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to Wodonga.

"When war broke out in the country we had no peace, people were being killed all around us and others were trying to flee the war, especially in the regions, they were just trying to get away, it was not possible to stay there and survive," Pastor Mbele said.

"So we went to Tanzania, then left for Nairobi, Kenya, where I was living for 12 years and afterward I moved to Australia because there was no peace in these places - life could be a nightmare.

"I came to Australia in 2017 and since then I have enjoyed this place, it is peaceful."

For Pastor Mbele, who is hoping to buy a home in West Wodonga, the cliche of the "great Australian dream" was finally becoming a joyous reality.

Not for him the big capital cities - he said he's found his peace here on the Border.

"The diversity and multiculturalism is what I love about Australia and this is certainly reflected in Albury-Wodonga," he said.

"I don't want to go to Sydney or Melbourne, we're staying here, in fact I'm planning to buy a house here, my new home now, not anywhere else.

"I went to Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Sydney and Melbourne but Wodonga is by far the best for us.

"We're working our way to what is known as the great Australian dream, to own a house, so today is a very special day for us."

Former South African national Daniel Markram, with his wife Mari-Louise and daughter Shardone, said he would encourage anyone looking for a new future to persevere with the immigration process.

"I started the journey to here many years ago in South Africa, I was with the defence force there for nearly 27 years," he said.

"I applied to the Australian Defence Force in 2018 and they offered permanent residence and then we started the process to get citizenship.

"We arrived in Australia 2021 and moved to West Wodonga. To serve in the ADF you need to have citizenship so that's why I'm here today."

Mr Markram said he was encouraged by other friends from South Africa to make the move to Australian soil.

"They embraced Australia and I realised that I was being offered a better opportunity for me, my wife, and my child to grow up," he said.

"We came from the Northern Cape Province near Kimberley. I'm a corporal and specialise as an ammunition technician, that's why the ADF took me on because of my skills.

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"It's a big day, it's been a long fight and a long way to get here, but it's well worth it."

Other new Australians welcomed to the region at the ceremony were from the United States, the Philippines, Britain, India, Sri Lanka, China, Malawi and New Zealand.

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