TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – On Thursday (Oct. 6), representatives from the government of New Taipei City signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with representatives from Japan as well as Cheng Kung University (成功大學) related to disaster prevention.

New Taipei City, which formed a partnership with Japan’s Shizuoka Prefecture eight years ago, signed an additional MOU on Thursday to join the “Asia-Pacific Disaster Prevention Training Program.” The program will jointly train technicians and responders for disasters related to landslides, reports CNA.

Cheng Kung University reportedly helped to establish the Asia-Pacific Disaster Prevention Training Program in partnership with the University of Tsukuba in Ibaraki Prefecture and Kyoto University.

New Taipei Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) and Miyazaki Teizo (宮崎悌三), the director of the Shizuoka Prefecture Trade Office in Taiwan, were both at the signing ceremony on Thursday.

In his remarks, Miyazaki noted that with climate change, the risk posed by natural disasters is increasing. He said that given some similarities in the landscapes of New Taipei and Shizuoka, there is ample room for cooperation and mutual support between the two, reported CNA.

The MOUs call for developing training programs that will teach technicians how to respond and prepare for disasters when chances for landslides or flooding are high. The training will also cover practices for mitigating the worst effects of possible landslides.