A cooperative memorandum of understanding was inked by the Ministry of Education’s Primary and Secondary School International Educational Exchange Alliance and the Kumamoto Prefectural Board of Education in December 2025 in Japan, highlighting the two sides’ commitment to expanding bilateral exchanges.
According to the MOE, the agreement was signed by alliance CEO Chen Yuen-ju and Superintendent of Education Hiroki Ooi, with K-12 Education Administration Chief Secretary Huang Ching-yi among the witnesses. It aims to cultivate globally minded students with strong local identity and promote faculty and student exchanges, sister-school partnerships and flexible cooperation models.
Taiwan’s delegation visited several schools in the prefecture during the trip, the ministry said. It noted that the establishment of a Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. fab in Kumamoto has prompted local schools to launch semiconductor courses and encouraged joint research on semiconductors and sustainable development.
MOE statistics show that 25,000 teachers and students from 450 K-12 schools took part in in-person exchanges with Japan in 2024 and 2025, and another 15,000 participants from 200 schools joined online exchanges. Twelve of the schools held in-person exchanges with Kumamoto and seven held virtual ones, the ministry said, adding that Taiwan has 290 sister schools in Japan, demonstrating the two sides’ strong educational partnerships.
Kumamoto is the fourth prefecture to sign an MOU with the alliance, following Chiba, Miyagi and Shizuoka, the K-12 Education Administration said. The administration pledged to continue integrating resources to help schools connect internationally and cultivate students with global perspectives, it added. (YCH-E)
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