TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Kaohsiung has recruited 10 English-language teachers from diplomatic ally Eswatini, reports said Wednesday.

Nine of the teachers from the African country had already taught in Kaohsiung last year, and opted to stay for a second year, per CNA. The city’s departments of administrative affairs and international relations and of education called them together to present them to the public Wednesday.

The plan is for 250 foreign teachers to serve in the city’s bilingual education program this year. Local teachers also applied for training to enter the program, with 983 having taken courses so far.

In September 2023, Kaohsiung established sister city ties with the capital of Eswatini, Mbabane. Since then, the two cities have intensified their cooperation, with education functioning as an extension of their friendship, Kaohsiung officials said.

The city thanked the teachers from Eswatini for their contributions to bilingual education and gifted them local gourmet specialties at the meeting Wednesday. The teachers related how the city felt like a new home, with residents helping them find their way and offering them dumplings and pineapple cakes for major holidays.