Taipei City Government

Accompanied by Department of Information Technology (DOIT) Commissioner Lu Hsin-ke, Mayor Ko Wen-je attended the signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Smart City Exchange and Cooperation between Taipei and Fukuoka in Japan.

 

In his speech, the mayor pointed out the smart city trend is becoming strategically important to national and local economies around the world and offering opportunities related with the transformation and upgrading of these municipalities. Through this memorandum, both cities are committed to collaborations with proofs of concept experiments for systems and technologies that contribute to livable and sustainable cities.

 

Taipei and Fukuoka are both actively developing their smart cities, and are pursuing similar strategic objectives. Since the signing and the implementation of the Memorandum of International Exchange and Cooperation on Innovation and Entrepreneurship inked by both cities in 2017, Taipei and its Japanese partner city have worked closely together and created numerous opportunities and projects, including exchanges and collaboration among young entrepreneurs from both cities.

 

Fukuoka mayor Takashima Sōichirō, who had brought a delegation to attend the signing ceremony and meet counterparts in Taipei, underscored his city’s commitment to stepping up the existing collaboration in smart city development.

 

Takashima noted that, as one of only five key cities for the development of smart cities in Japan, Fukuoka actively participates in the development and construction of smart cities. Through the Fukuoka Smart East Project and other initiatives, the city on Japan’s southernmost main island is building the regulatory and policy framework to attract and facilitate innovative start-ups and talent.

 

The Fukuoka mayor underscored that his city follows with great interest Taipei’s endeavors in smart robots and smart devices for automated care, unmanned aerial vehicles, and other areas relevant to smart city development. He expressed his hopes that this MoU will lead to even more opportunities for exchange and collaboration in order to create livable, sustainable cities for the benefits of their residents.

 

In related developments, the GO SMART (Global Organization of Smart Cities) network initiated by Taipei will hold its inaugural conference on March 27 in Taipei, coinciding with the Smart City Summit & Expo annually held in Taipei.

 

Ko welcomed the Fukuoka delegation to the Smart City Summit & Expo and thanked the city of Fukuoka for joining the GO SMART alliance, a platform connecting local governments around the world around the theme of smart cities.

 

He noted that many challenges and solutions for smart city issues are found on the level of cities, and forward-thinking cities like Fukuoka and Taipei have much to contribute to each other and the world in this regard.