Both parties sign an agreement to jointly establish the Shenzhen-Macao Tourism Education Cooperation Center.

On April 29th, another innovative model of higher education integration within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area took root in Shenzhen. Shenzhen Polytechnic University (SZPU) and Macao University of Tourism signed an agreement and inaugurated the Shenzhen-Macao Tourism Education Cooperation Center at the Greater Bay Area Specialized Vocational Education Park. This marks a new phase in vocational education exchanges and cooperation between Shenzhen and Macao, taking a solid step forward in Shenzhen’s journey to become an educational and talent hub in the Greater Bay Area. Distinguished guests including He Xinhong, Deputy Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of Shenzhen Municipal Committee; Chen Qi, Deputy Director of the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Affairs Office of the Department of Education of Guangdong Province; Cai Maozhou, Chief Supervisor of the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Education; Fanny Vong, President of Macao University of Tourism; and Xu Jianling, Vice Party Secretary and President of SZPU, along with over 30 teachers and students attended the event.

Innovating Tourism Education Models

TheOutline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Areaadvocates for the support of joint educational ventures among universities in Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao, encouraging the joint establishment of superior disciplines, laboratories, and research centers. The establishment of the Shenzhen-Macao Tourism Education Cooperation Center is a proactive attempt under this outline, aiming for mutual enhancement and coordinated development of higher education between Shenzhen and Macao.

Unveiling of the Shenzhen-Macao Tourism Education Cooperation Center.

In his speech, Xu Jianling stated that Macao University of Tourism is the first Macanese higher education institution to establish a cooperative relationship with SZPU and to be integrated into the Greater Bay Area Specialized Vocational Education Park. Going forward, the two institutions will rely on the Shenzhen-Macao Tourism Education Cooperation Center to adhere to the principles of “Openness, Sharing, Innovation, and Excellence”. They will cooperate in talent cultivation, faculty training, course development, vocational qualification certification, and practical training base construction. By leveraging their respective strengths andresources, they aim to explore new paths for the international development of specialized higher education fields and strive to make the center a model for tourism education cooperation in the Greater Bay Area and nationwide.

Fanny Vong expressed that the Shenzhen-Macao cooperation center is a top-tier tourism education platform created jointly by central cities in the Greater Bay Area, pioneering new models and pathways in tourism education. She looks forward to the center acting as a bridge and bond, cultivating batches of high-quality tourism professionals, providing solid talent support for the sustainable development of the tourism industry, opening up a brighter future for cultural exchanges in the Greater Bay Area, and promoting the vigorous development and deeper cooperation across the region.

Providing New Experiences in Education Integration

Vocational education is a crucial foundation supporting “Made in China” and “Created in China”. The Specialized Vocational Education Park is a symbolic achievement of high-quality development in vocational education, exemplifying the deep integration of industry, academia, and research.

Visiting the Greater Bay Area Specialized Vocational Education Park.

On March 17, 2023, the Greater Bay Area Specialized Vocational Education Park, co-established by SZPU and the Hong Kong Vocational Training Council, officially opened. It serves as a pioneering attempt at innovative cooperation in vocational education within the Greater Bay Area, accelerating the coordinated progress of vocational education across the three regions. Over the past year,focusingon “learning”, “training”, “creation” and “research”,the park has committed to creating a high-level vocational education cooperation platform, supporting the economic and social development of the Greater Bay Area and aiding the industrial transformation and upgrading of the region. To further solidify the construction of the Greater Bay Area Specialized Vocational Education Park and integrate the superior educational resources of the three regions, SZPU dispatched a delegation in June 2023 to visit three universities in Macao to align on cooperative intentions.

Chen Qi noted that this year marks the first anniversary of the official opening of the Greater Bay Area Specialized Vocational Education Park. The establishment of the “Shenzhen-Macao Tourism Education Cooperation Center” by SZPU and Macao University of Tourism not only opens a new chapter in the development of the park, but also serves as a model in the integration of higher education across Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao. In the future, it is hoped that the two parties will introduce advanced international tourism education concepts and resources, explore and cultivate well-known tourism education and training brands locally and internationally, and provide more replicable and promotable typical experiences for the integrated development of education in the Bay Area.

In recent years, Shenzhen and Macao have established cooperative mechanisms and specialized work teams for collaboration across various fields, accelerating exchanges and cooperation.

In his address, He Xinhong emphasized that as the 25th anniversary of Macao’s return to the motherland approaches, the signing and unveiling of the Shenzhen-Macao Tourism Education Cooperation Center is a significant move to promote the complementary advantages, resource sharing, and cooperative win-win between Shenzhen and Macao in higher tourism education. It is another important platform for promoting exchanges and integration among the youth of the two places and a significant outcome of bilateral cooperation. The center will undoubtedly cultivate more tourism professionals with innovative spirits and practical capabilities, providing strong support for the high-quality development of the tourism industry in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Injecting New Momentum into Cooperation in the Greater Bay Area

In promoting the cooperation of higher education among Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao, SZPU has always taken an active and pioneering role. Since the issuance of theOutline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the university has intensified its cooperation with Hong Kong and Macao based on a solid foundation of past collaborations with higher education institutions and vocational education organizations from these regions, helping to promote resource sharing and complementarity in vocational education across the Greater Bay Area.

25 teams from Shenzhen Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Vocational Training Council, Singapore Institute of Technical Education, Zhongshan Polytechnic, and Guangzhou Huashang Vocational College compete together in the Greater Bay Area International Youth Skills Invitational.

In 2004, SZPU was approved by the Ministry of Education as the first national vocational college to independently recruit students from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan. Twenty years later, the university has enrolled nearly a thousand students from these regions; in 2008, the university began a joint talent cultivation project with the Hong Kong Vocational Training Council for an “Advanced Diploma in Electrical Services Engineering”, which has continued to this day, training 14 cohorts of students from Hong Kong; in 2015, the university started applying for the Ministry of Education’s “Ten Thousand Talents Plan” projects in cooperation with the Hong Kong Vocational Training Council, securing approval for 52 projects involving more than a thousand teachers and students from Hong Kong and Macao; the Greater Bay Area Youth Innovation and Entrepreneurship Base, operated by SZPU’s School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, has provided a one-stop service platform for entrepreneurial projects for young students from the three regions, currently incubating 59 projects on site. Additionally, the university has dispatched over 500 batches of more than 4,000 teachers and 80 batches of more than 2,000 students for short- and long-term exchanges at institutions in Hong Kong and Macao, hosting over 10,000 visitors from these institutions.

Educational cooperation development is an important support for the high-quality development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. With the joint efforts of SZPU, the Hong Kong Vocational Training Council, and Macao University of Tourism, the Greater Bay Area Specialized Vocational Education Park will provide continuous talent support and innovative momentum for the high-quality development of the Greater Bay Area.

(Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Affairs Office)