MOE Training Ship Wind Rider Visits Ehime, Strengthening Maritime Education Exchanges with Japan
From May 11 to 13, 2026, the Ministry of Education training ship Wind Rider 御風輪 made her inaugural visit to Matsuyama Port in Ehime Prefecture in southeastern Japan. This was the first time that a Ministry of Education training ship visited Japan’s Shikoku region, and her visit represents another milestone in maritime education related cooperation between Taiwan and Japan. On board were 118 teachers and students from National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology which built and currently operates the Wind Rider, 50 from the Department of Marine Navigation, and 68 from the Department of Marine Engineering.
Dr. Yang Yu-Huei 楊玉惠, Director-General of the Ministry of Education’s Department of Technological and Vocational Education, who officially launched the Wind Rider in October, 2023; Prof. Yu Ke-Wei 俞克維, one of the vice presidents of National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology; and Ms. Lee Kuan-Ying 李冠穎, Education Secretary of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Osaka, all traveled to Matsuyama Port, where they joined staff from the Ehime Prefectural Government and the Ehime Prefectural Board of Education to welcome the training ship’s arrival. Speaking on board, Director-General Yang said that as well as an important platform for maritime navigation and marine engineering training, Wind Rider also serves as a bridge for international educational cooperation.
During the training ship’s visit, approximately 75 teachers and students from two colleges that are member institutions of Japan’s National Institute of Technology (KOSEN)—Oshima National College of Maritime Technology, located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, and Yuge National College of Maritime Technology, located in Ehime Prefecture—were invited to go on board and participate in academic and cultural exchange activities. The program included guided tours of the bridge, engine room, and simulation facilities, presentations and interactive exchange sessions.
The teachers and students were also joined by administrators, making this one of the largest Taiwan–Japan maritime education exchange activities held in recent years. Kenya Nakai 中井賢哉, Director of the High School Education Division of the Ehime Prefectural Board of Education, praised the valuable educational role of the Wind Rider and its advanced facilities, describing her as a “mobile classroom at sea”. Wind Rider is equipped with state-of-the-art navigation, marine engineering, and simulation systems that meet the international training standards set out in the STCW Convention.
The Ministry of Education will continue to use Wind Rider to train world-class maritime professionals, and enhance international maritime education exchanges and cooperation.
