Taipei City Government

Mayor Chiang Wan-an met with his counterpart Mayor Yamaguch Shinju of Kasama City at city hall on May 11. The two sides exchanged opinions on a range of topics from general agreements to civil servant exchange to talks between the younger generation from the two cities.

At the beginning of his address, Chiang welcomed the Japanese mayor and his delegation to Taipei and expressed his gratitude to Kasama City for taking part in the 2023 Taiwan Lantern Festival in Taipei earlier in the year. He is happy to see them in Taipei again, with Mayor Yamaguchi personally leading the group.

Chiang pointed out that Taipei City and Kasama City have conducted exchanges in areas such as horticultural knowhow, tourism, and public servant programs. The city in Ibaraki Prefecture is also known for actively promoting regional revitalization policies. Both Taipei and Kasama face similar challenges such as low birth rates and aging society, which are areas he believes the two municipalities can learn from each other in terms of approach and strategy.

Mayor Yamaguchi thanked Chiang for taking time off to meet with him and his delegation. He also expressed his gratitude for Taipei’s for inviting Kasama to take part in the Taiwan Lantern Festival earlier this year. In addition to suggesting that the two sides work on general agreements, he also pointed out that Kasama City’s representative office in Taiwan will celebrate its fifth anniversary and invites Mayor Chiang to attend the banquet slated for November 25.

The two cities have seen growing interactions in recent years. In 2020, Taipei and Kasama City inked an agreement on talent exchanges, with a city hall staff member being dispatched to the tourism division of the Japanese city for a short-term program.