Kaohsiung and Mutsu Upgrade Educational Exchange: MOU Signed and Kaohsiung Tech Establishes Sister School Ties with Japanese Institution

Kaohsiung City’s Education Bureau continues to deepen international educational cooperation. On May 5, Deputy Mayor Li Huai-ren led a delegation to Mutsu City, Aomori Prefecture, Japan, where he witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on educational exchange and cooperation between Kaohsiung City’s Education Bureau and Mutsu City’s Board of Education. The delegation also visited Tanabu High School and Mutsu Industrial High School, observing the formal establishment of sister school ties between Kaohsiung Industrial High School and Mutsu Industrial High School—elevating bilateral collaboration from school-level exchanges to official educational cooperation, marking a new milestone in Taiwan-Japan educational relations.

### Deepening Taiwan-Japan Educational Cooperation: Full-Scale Launch of Student-Faculty Exchanges, Online Collaboration, and Vocational Education Partnerships

Deputy Mayor Li Huai-ren led the delegation in visiting Tanabu High School for exchange activities and took commemorative photos with students and faculty. (Photo courtesy: Kaohsiung City Education Bureau)

Under the witness of Deputy Mayor Li Huai-ren and Mutsu Mayor Yamamoto Tomoya, Kaohsiung Education Bureau Director Wu Li-sen and Mutsu Education Director Abe Kenichi formally signed the educational cooperation MOU at Mutsu City Hall. Moving forward, both parties will continue promoting faculty-student exchanges, online interactions, and diverse educational collaborations to strengthen their educational partnership.

Director Wu stated that cultivating students’ international competitiveness is a key educational goal. In recent years, the bureau has consistently expanded educational cooperation based on sister-city and friendly-city relationships. The bond between Kaohsiung and Mutsu dates back more than 30 years, when Yang Ming Junior High School established sister-school ties with Mutsu City’s Kawachi Junior High School. By the end of last year, all nine junior high schools in Mutsu had formed sister-school relationships with Yang Ming Junior High, symbolizing the deepening of educational exchange between the two cities.

The delegation also visited Aomori Prefectural Tanabu High School, which has signed an educational cooperation MOU with Fucheng High School, further discussing collaboration initiatives such as online pen-pal programs, class-to-class virtual exchanges, and cultural sharing. Students from the school’s English club presented on Mutsu’s local characteristics and culture, showcasing the outcomes of past exchanges.

Subsequently, Deputy Mayor Li witnessed the official establishment of sister-school ties between Kaohsiung Industrial High School and Mutsu Industrial High School—the first vocational school partnership between the two cities—opening a new international collaboration platform for Kaohsiung’s vocational education. Kaohsiung Industrial High School Principal Kao Jui-hsien participated in the signing ceremony via video conference and invited Mutsu Industrial High School Principal Yukiyama Toshikatsu and his team to visit Kaohsiung, aiming to sustain technical expertise exchange and student interaction.

The Education Bureau noted that Kaohsiung and Mutsu have already established a multi-tiered educational cooperation network spanning kindergartens, junior highs, and senior highs/vocational schools. The formal signing of the educational cooperation MOU symbolizes the institutionalization of their collaboration. Going forward, through both online and in-person exchanges, English project presentations, and cross-cultural activities, students will be provided with greater international learning opportunities to foster global perspectives and intercultural communication skills.