OALC

The heads of 10 prestigious universities from the mainland and Hong Kong gathered at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) on 16 December for the 2008 Meeting of the Association of University Presidents of China (AUPC) and Presidents' Forum. They included university presidents of the founding members: Prof. Gu Binglin, AUPC Chairman and President of Tsinghua University; Prof. Wang Shenghong, AUPC Vice-Chairman and President of Fudan University; Prof. Lawrence J. Lau, AUPC Vice-Chairman and Vice-Chancellor of CUHK; President Zhang Jie of Shanghai Jiao Tong University; President Zhou Qifeng of Peking University; President Zheng Nanning of Xi'an Jiaotong University; President Chen Jun of Nanjing University; Vice-Chancellor Tsui Lap-chee of The University of Hong Kong; President Yang Wei of Zhejiang University; and Vice-President Wong Yuk-shan of The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Altogether 45 representatives from these 10 prestigious universities attended this major event in higher education.

The opening ceremony was officiated by Prof. Wu Qidi, Vice Minister of Education of the People's Republic of China, Mr. Pan Yonghua, Director General of Education, Science and Technology Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR, Prof. Gu Binglin and Prof. Lawrence J. Lau. Prof. Xu Zhihong, former President of Peking University and Prof. Roland T. Chin, Acting President of The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology were also present at the ceremony among various delegates of member universities.

The theme of the Presidents' Forum this year is "Towards developing world-class status for research-intensive universities in China". Prof. Wu Qidi, Vice Minister of Education of the People's Republic of China, delivered a keynote address at the Forum, while vice-chancellors and presidents presented speeches on the topic and took part in the subsequent discussions. It is aimed that the university presidents can share their views on how to achieve the goal of becoming a first-class university in the world. After the Forum, the vice-chancellors and presidents also discussed the future development of AUPC.

After the meeting, the delegates visited the Hong Kong Science Park. They met with Mr. Anthony Tan, Chief Executive Officer of Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation, to understand the latest sciences and technology development of Hong Kong. A dinner was hosted by The Hon. Laura Cha, Chairman of the University Grants Committee for the guests in the evening.

AUPC is initiated by presidents of a group of well-acclaimed research-intensive universities in China. It was founded in November 1997 in Shanghai and was approved by the Ministry of Education of China. The objective of the Association is to dedicate its expertise and coordinate resources to the development of China higher education in the 21st century. Through meetings and forums, AUPC aims to enhance the linkage among member universities and promote regular exchange and cooperation, in order to achieve academic and research excellence.