The Presidents’ Forum 2024 of the Belt and Road Alliance for Traditional Chinese Medicine was held at CUHK on 16 August. More than 30 presidents and representatives from traditional medicine-related universities and colleges from mainland China and Belt and Road countries and regions gathered on the CUHK campus to discuss the internationalisation and modernisation of traditional medicine.

Over 300 attendees from more than 60 institutions attended the event, including representatives from the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR, Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR, the Hong Kong government, and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) administrative bureaus and government departments from mainland provinces, as well as ambassadors or consuls-general from countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.

CUHK Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Rocky S. Tuan said in his welcome address: “Since its establishment last year by CUHK, with the full support of the initiating and founding members, the Alliance has been committed to promoting the inheritance of and innovation traditional medicine, integrating it with modern practices and taking it to the world, which resonates with CUHK’s founding mission to combine tradition with modernity and to bridge China and the West.”

Hong Kong Secretary for Health Professor Lo Chung-mau said Hong Kong possessed excellent conditions for the development of Chinese medicine, which include a comprehensive regulatory system for Chinese medicine, abundant talent and extensive experience in areas such as healthcare services, education, research and international connectivity. The government had dedicated more resources to establishing flagship infrastructure and taking forward various policy measures benefiting the growth of the Chinese medicine sector, he said.

Nicholas Ho Lik-chi, Hong Kong’s Commissioner for Belt and Road, said he looked forward to the alliance playing a critical role in forging partnerships amongst universities, research institutes, academia and enterprises on TCM: “Together we could bring TCM to new heights to navigate towards a successful Health Silk Road, or creating more development opportunities for Belt and Road countries and tangible benefits for the people.”

The attendees witnessed a plaque-unveiling ceremony for the Belt and Road International Laboratory for Innovative Traditional Medicine Research, with several universities from Canada, Malaysia, Thailand, South Africa and Sri Lanka joining as new founding member units of the Alliance. Professor Xu Hongxi, chairman of the Alliance, delivered a keynote speech on “Opportunities and Challenges of Traditional Medicine Globalisation”, highlighting the importance of improving the quality and standards of traditional medicine, strengthening international cooperation and promoting scientific research.