As a commercial and trade cooperation service platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, Macao has further leveraged its role as a Sino–Lusophone ‘precise connector’ in the field of education, with a view to strengthening its higher education cooperation and exchange with Lusophone countries. Notably, the Education and Youth Development Bureau (DSEDJ) and the Chinese–Portuguese Bilingual Talent Training Alliance, which comprises the University of Macau, Macao Polytechnic University, the Macau University of Science and Technology, the City University of Macau and the University of Saint Joseph, successfully co-organised the 4^th Forum for Rectors of Higher Education Institutions of China and Portuguese-Speaking Countries from 15 to 17 June.

Spanning three days, the Forum featured a keynote speech and three sub-forums, which were delivered and moderated respectively by member institutions of the Chinese–Portuguese Bilingual Talent Training Alliance. Participants engaged in discussions on Macao‒Hengqin synergy for joint cultivation of international talent, as well as on other topics including ‘bilingualism + professionalism’, AI in new media, and promotion of traditional Chinese medicine culture in programmes of higher education institutions in Portuguese-speaking countries. Guest speakers included overseas participants Fernando Augusto Sousa Ferreira Pinto, vice-rector of the Catholic University of Portugal; António José da Cruz Belo, president of the Polytechnic University of Lisbon; Artur Manuel Soares da Silva, rector of the University of Aveiro; Petrilson Pinheiro, director of the Institute of Language Studies at the University of Campinas, Brazil; and João Alfredo dos Reis Peixoto, vice-rector of the University of Lisbon, alongside participants from the Chinese mainland, namely Wang Xin, vice president of Shanghai International Studies University; Ren Mengshan, vice president of the Communication University of China; Cai Yingwei, vice president of Yangzhou University; and Shen Minghao, vice president of Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.

The closing ceremony of the Forum was held on 17 June at the Macau University of Science and Technology, where Teng Sio Hong, deputy director of the DSEDJ, delivered remarks, while Pang Chuan, vice president of the Macau University of Science and Technology, summarised the outcomes of the Forum. Over the course of the event, visiting university leaders and representatives from Lusophone nations also toured the Guangdong‒Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin to learn about the development plan for the Macao‒Hengqin International Education (University) Town, experiencing first-hand the vast opportunities that ‘Macao‒Hengqin synergy’ creates for higher education cooperation and talent mobility in Macao.

This year’s Forum was staged concurrently with the 35^th Annual Meeting of the Association of Portuguese Language Universities (AULP), so Forum participants were also able to attend the opening ceremony of the Annual Meeting and some of its parallel sessions. During the period, higher education institutions in Macao signed a total of 12 memoranda and agreements of cooperation with overseas universities, aiming to comprehensively deepen partnerships in areas such as academic exchange, scientific research and innovation, and talent development. By creating synergy between both platforms and amplifying their impact, the events achieved their intended outcomes.

Over 150 higher education leaders, organisation representatives and other participants from Portuguese-speaking countries, the Chinese mainland and Macao convened across the two events. Attendees included higher education institutions and organisations across Lusophone countries, such as the AULP, the Polytechnic of Leiria, the Polytechnic University of Lisbon, ISCTE – University Institute of Lisbon, the Polytechnic Institute of Viseu, the Catholic University of Portugal, the University of Aveiro, the University of Lisbon, the University of Minho, the University of Porto, NOVA University Lisbon, the University of Cape Verde, Agostinho Neto University, the Catholic University of Angola, Mandume ya Ndemufayo University, the State University of Campinas, the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Eduardo Mondlane University, the Pedagogical University of Maputo, and the National University of Timor-Leste; as well as universities in the Chinese mainland, including Beijing Foreign Studies University, the Communication University of China, Shanghai International Studies University, Yangzhou University, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, Hainan University, and Zhejiang International Studies University (listed in no particular order).