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The donation from the Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong helped establish "The Centre for Catholic Studies" at the University’s Department of Cultural and Religious Studies. The Most Reverend Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, Bishop of Hong Kong and Professor Lawrence J. Lau, Vice-Chancellor of The Chinese University of Hong Kong officiated at the Inauguration Ceremony of the Centre today.

Professor Lai Pan-chiu, Chairman of the Department of Cultural and Religious Studies and the Director of the newly established Centre expressed that "the Centre aims at promoting academic research, training scholars, enhancing academic exchanges among scholars worldwide, and disseminating knowledge of Catholic culture".

The Centre will invite prestigious scholars to lecture and conduct research on Catholic studies at CUHK. It will also give support to research postgraduate students to further their studies and research. Apart from offering a stream in Catholic studies within the Master of Arts programme in Religious studies, and other undergraduate courses and general education courses in the field, the Centre also plans to organize academic conferences, lectures for the public, and publish academic publications.

CUHK has received a donation of HK$100 million from Mr. Alex K. Yasumoto. As Mr. Yasumoto aims to "expand the international horizon of its students and promote cultural exchanges among the young people of Hong Kong, Mainland China, Japan and many other places of the world", the donation will be used to support international exchange efforts as well as academic and research development of the University.

Apart from annual academic exchange programmes with prestigious institutions around the globe, some 280 non-local undergraduates have been recruited from across five continents. They come from 17 mainland provinces and municipalities, the United States, Australia, Italy, Peru, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and South Korea. With Mr Yasumoto’s remarkable contribution, the University will further enhance its effort to promote academic development and international as well as cultural exchange programmes that are crucial for nurturing young talents from different parts of the world.

The Chinese University of Hong Kong has received a donation of HK$50 million from the Lee Shau Kee Foundation, founded by Dr. Lee Shau Kee, Chairman and Managing Director of Henderson Land Development Co. Ltd. The donation will be allocated to support CUHK's pursuit of academic excellence and the establishment of scholarships to nurture talents.

As Dr. Lee Shau Kee believed that the University has accomplished much in the past, he has funded scholarships and sponsored many academic development projects of the University over the years. A Member of the Advisory Board of the MBA Programmes since 1977, and a Member of the Board of Trustees of United College since 1988, he helped found the MBA Programme at its most initial stage. In 1991, he and Dr. Cheng Yu Tung jointly donated US$6 million to support the CUHK-Yale South China Studies Programme. Conferred to the degree of Doctor of Social Science honoris causa by the University in 2003, Dr. Lee was also made an Honorary Fellow of the Chinese University in 2002. With the current donation, he hoped to bring further advancement to CU campus.