The University of Macau Development Foundation (UMDF) and the University of Macau (UM) held a signing ceremony for the Agreement between UMDF and UM on Funding the Establishment of a Temporary Campus Site in the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zonen in Hengqin at the Ho Yin Conference Hall of UM on 28 November 2023. The UMDF will allocate funds from the surplus of its investment income over the years to sponsor the spending on hardware and software for the establishment of the temporary UM premises in the In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin for four years.

At the ceremony, under the witness of Lam Kam Seng Peter, char of the Trustees Committee and Tse Chi Wai Daniel, vice chair of the Trustees Committee of the UMDF, Lau Veng Lin, chair of the Executive Committee, and Song Yonghua, rector of UM signed the funding agreement on behalf of their respective sides. Rector Song Yonghua expressed his heartfelt thanks for the Foundation’s longstanding support to the University. At present, UM has formulated preliminary directions for the establishment of the temporary site in the Zone, expecting to first prepare works in various fields, including microelectronics, Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence and Robotics and Fintech. This move aims to promote optimisation, integration and collaborative sharing of higher education resources within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. It will also help drive economic and social development of Hengqin and Macao through technological innovations, while creating favourable conditions for the construction of a new campus in the In-Depth Cooperation Zone.

UMDF is an organisation dedicated to supporting and enabling the attainment of the academic and educational goals of UM, the sole beneficiary of the foundation. Following the model of internationally renowned university foundations, it sources its funds through donations from the naming of residential colleges and buildings, the community and investment income, etc. Adhering to the principles of prudent investment, controllable risk and reasonable returns, the UMDF has been using its accumulated investment income to support the development of UM in the form of an endowment fund. The Foundation has currently supported UM to carry out projects on different funding areas, including talent attraction and nurturing, industry-academia-research, teaching and research excellence projects, collaboration and exchange between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, development of students and the residential colleges, and community services. Looking ahead, the UMDF will augment its resources to continue supporting the University in its advancement, enhancing the University’s competitiveness and social impact.

Members of the Trustees Committee and the Executive Committee of the UMDF, as well as the UM leadership and departmental representatives attended the ceremony.