Taichung has made further advances in international tourism development! Taichung City Government and Nagoya in Japan signed the Sister City Tourism Partnership Agreement today (October 25), reinforcing bilateral exchanges in direct charter flights, festival participation, and student educational tours, in turn fostering more Japanophiles and Taiwanphiles. Nagoya Deputy Mayor Ichiro Hirosawa commended Taichung's status as a major economic and industrial hub in Taiwan and hoped that both cities will become best partners in promoting tourism, while Deputy Mayor Bruce Linghu also invited Deputy Mayor Hirosawa to attend the 2020 Taiwan Lantern Festival in Taichung to facilitate further interactions between the 2 cities.
Taichung and Nagoya signed a Tourism Partnership MOU during the Taichung flora expo last year that paved the way for bilateral exchanges. After Mayor Shiow-yen Lu came into office, she vigorously promoted international city diplomacy. Today, Deputy Mayor Linghu signed the Sister City Tourism Partnership Agreement with Nagoya Deputy Mayor Ichiro Hirosawa to engage in further interactions.
"Da Jia Hao!" Nagoya Deputy Mayor Ichiro Hirosawa greeted the audience in Chinese, demonstrating his affinity. According to him, Nagoya recently formed the sister city system last year, thus signing the Sister City Tourism Partnership Agreement with Taichung is especially meaningful and worth commemorating. Taichung and Nagoya share many similarities in dimensions such as tourism resources, culture, and economy, therefore both cities are expected to become best partners in promoting tourism.
Deputy Mayor Ichiro Hirosawa commented that Nagoya is a city with 4 centuries of heritage and culture, and just like Taichung, it is a manufacturing center and a major industrial economy. By signing the agreement, the aim is not only to promote tourism but also share both cities' charisma and facilitate educational tours among the next generation (such as senior high school students), in turn fostering more frequent interactions between citizens of both cities.
According to Deputy Mayor Linghu, Nagoya has supported numerous events in Taichung including the Taichung Flora Expo, which recently drew to a successful conclusion in April this year, ATTA Taichung International Travel Fair, which opened today, and the Taichung International Dance Carnival by attending the events; Nagoya Convention & Visitors Bureau Director Matsuo Toshinori, as well as city councilors from Aichi and Nagoya, will lead delegations to attend the 2020 Taiwan Lantern Festival in Taichung, exhibiting the close friendship between both parties.
Tourism and Travel Bureau Director-General Hsiao-chi Lin pointed out that both cities are located at the heart of their countries; besides a similar population, both of them share characteristics including a seaport, airport, and convenient transportation. In 2017, the average GDP of Nagoya citizens exceeded US$50,000, ranking the city 3rd in Japan and making it an important source of international tourism for Taichung. There are 3 major dimensions to the agreement signed: organize theme tourism activities to encourage citizens from both cities visit each other's city; facilitate educational tours among young students; proactively promote both cities' tourism resources and organize media tours to achieve the synergy effect through resource sharing.