Professor Rocky Tuan, Vice-Chancellor and President of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) led a delegation to participate in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau University Alliance (GHMUA) Annual Meeting and Presidents Forum 2019 on July 19. CUHK delegates included Professor Fok Tai-fai, Pro-Vice-Chancellor; Professor Tang Sze Wing, Department Chairman of the Chinese Language and Literature; Professor Shelly Tse, Acting Director of The Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care; Dr. Chung Pui-hong, Clinical Professional Consultant of The Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care; and Ms. Wing Wong, Director of Academic Links (China).

The activities were held at the University of Macau (UM) with the theme "Witnessing the 20th Anniversary of the MacaoSAR, Integrating GHMUA Impact with National Policies". More than 150 participants from the alliance member universities and government offices across Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao exchanged views on the advancement of higher education in the three regions.  At the event,  signing ceremonies for establishment of GHMUA's sub-alliances were also held.  CUHK joined hands with Sun Yat-Sen University (SYSU) and UM to establish the "GHMUA for Chinese" and partnered with SYSU, Southern Medical University, The University of Hong Kong and UM for the "GHMUA for Public Health". It is expected that member universities under the sub-alliances can leverage their respective advantages and share various collaborative resources to foster academic development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

As the Vice-Chairperson of the Alliance, President Tuan chaired the alliance board meeting together with President Luo Jun of SYSU and President Song Yong-Hua of UM. A range of collaborative plans were devised at the meeting to direct further developments of the alliance. President Tuan also hosted one of the thematic sessions titled "Advancing Growth of First Class Universities, Promoting Development of Great Bay Area" for the Presidents Forum.  Professor Tuan remarkedthat "to contribute to the development of the Greater Bay Area, each of us should aim at building ourselves to become first-class universities through collaborative efforts derived from the GHKMUA platform. We may consider launching more top disciplines and high-end laboratories and research centers which are in the demand of the Greater Bay Area, so as to upgrade the standard of talent-nurturing and technological innovation in the regions. This will give us an opportunity to catch up with and even exceed the educational development of other bay areas."

Initiated by CUHK, SYSU and the UM, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau University Alliance was established in November 2016 as a higher education platform which aspires to extend the current efforts of elite universities in promoting academic cooperation in the three regions.  The partnership fosters collaboration in various areas including scientific research, student interflow, cultural and innovation exchange as well as policy study.  With 9 new members joining this year, there are now thirty-seven alliance members including 21 universities from the Guangdong Province, 9 universities from Hong Kong, as well as 7 institutions from Macau.