Tainan City and Chandler, Arizona, have been Friendly Cities since 2016, and this year marks the 10th anniversary of their relationship. Chandler City Mayor Kevin Hartke visited the Tainan City Government on August 31, accompanied by Chih-Chung Kao, Adviser of the Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC), and Yu-Ping Yen, Associate Adviser of the OCAC. Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che welcomed the delegation, together with representatives from the Department of Information and International Relations, the Economic Development Bureau, the Cultural Affairs Bureau, and the Bureau of Sports. Legislator Chen Ting-fei also attended the meeting. The two sides reflected on their exchanges over the past decade and discussed next steps for cooperation in technology, culture, and economic development.
Mayor Huang Wei-che pointed out that both Tainan and Chandler are important technology cities. As TSMC expands its semiconductor operations in Arizona, the two cities have greater opportunities to share experience in areas such as industrial development and urban planning. He said Tainan hopes to promote further cooperation with Chandler in trade, technology, culture, and sports, while also encouraging student exchanges that can strengthen the friendship between the two cities for generations to come.
Mayor Kevin Hartke of Chandler City expressed that he was delighted to visit beautiful Tainan. He noted that a Chandler Little League baseball team visited Tainan 10 years ago and that TSMC’s investment in Arizona reflects deepening ties between Taiwan and Arizona. The investment creates economic and educational opportunities while opening new possibilities for cultural, sports, and youth exchanges. Hartke noted that both Chandler and Tainan started as agricultural cities and are now important forces in driving the semiconductor industry. He looks forward to further investment and partnerships in a range of fields that will strengthen ties between the two cities.
Chandler and Tainan established Friendly City relations on October 27, 2016. Located in the southeastern part of the Phoenix metropolitan area, Chandler City was once known primarily for its agriculture and livestock farming; nowadays, with high-tech industries such as Intel, Microchip, and NXP gradually setting up locations in the city, Chandler is becoming part of the wider Greater Phoenix technology cluster, often known as the “Silicon Desert”. The Chandler delegation will also attend SEMICON Taiwan in Taipei in early September.