An inauguration ceremony for the University of Macau-Huafa Group Joint Laboratory and Zhuhai UM Science & Technology Research Institute was held today (25 October). The establishment of the joint laboratory and the research institute is an example of cross-border industry-academia collaboration to align Macao’s development with national development. By bringing together innovative people and advanced technologies from Zhuhai and Macao, the laboratory and the institute hope to create a world-class hub for collaborative innovation in order to promote industrial upgrading and commercialisation of research results in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

At the ceremony, UM Rector Yonghua Song and Huafa Group General Manager Li Guangning signed a strategic cooperation framework agreement. Many distinguished guests attended the ceremony. They were Wang Xindong, secretary general of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao Special Administrative Region; Guo Yonghang, secretary of the Zhuhai municipal committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC); Lam Kam Seng, chair of UM’s University Council; He Dihua, a second-class inspector of the Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong province; Sou Chio Fai, director of the Higher Education Bureau of Macao; Zhao Jianguo, deputy secretary of the Zhuhai municipal committee of the CPC; Lau Wai Meng, director of Macau Post and Telecommunications; Yan Wu, vice mayor of Zhuhai; Lau Wai Meng, deputy director of the Economic Bureau of Macao; Niu Jing, secretary of the Management Committee of the Hengqin New Area; as well as representatives and leaders from UM and the appropriate departments in Zhuhai and Hengqin New Area.

Rector Song says that the joint laboratory will provide a platform for UM and Huafa Group to carry out concrete cooperation in various areas. For instance, both parties will carry out close cooperation in technological innovation in order to promote the moderate diversification of Macao’s economy and industrial upgrading in Zhuhai. Rector Song adds that with the great support of the government of the Hengqin New Area, the planning and refurbishment of the new building of the Zhuhai UM Science & Technology Research Institute took less than six months to complete, and the various research centres are now ready for use.

As the only public comprehensive university in Macao, UM is committed to nurturing professionals in various fields to serve society. Thanks to the support of the central and Macao SAR governments, the university has established a variety of academic disciplines in such fields as electronic information, engineering and materials, biomedical sciences, artificial intelligence, and brain science, with significant progress in scientific research and innovative capacity in recent years. Huafa Group is an industry leader, a state-owned enterprise, a provider of comprehensive financial services, and a leader in industrial upgrading. Both parties will cooperate in spirit of the Outline of the Strategies for the Development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, in order to achieve a win-win result, to establish a platform for technological innovation on the west bank of Pearl River, and to make a contribution to the development of the Greater Bay Area.

Source: Research Services and Knowledge Transfer Office

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