Integrated resort operator MGM donated 1.0 million patacas to the Macao University of Tourism Development Foundation (UTMDF) at a signing ceremony yesterday, with the funding set to support the university’s academic and institutional development.
The donation agreement was inked on UTM’s Taipa campus by Cheung Kin Chung, chair of the Executive Committee of the UTM Development Foundation, and Kenneth Feng Xiaofeng, chief executive officer and executive director of MGM China Holdings.
According to a statement by the public university yesterday, the funding will support improvements to the learning environment, teaching and research quality, and international cooperation, with the aim of contributing to UTM’s development.
Addressing the ceremony, Cheung said that Macau’s tourism and leisure industry needs more high-calibre interdisciplinary talent as the government advances its “1+4” appropriate economic diversification strategy. He described the donation as an opportunity to strengthen industry-academia collaboration and support the development of cultural tourism professionals.
Meanwhile, Feng said that talent cultivation was fundamental to strengthening Macau’s competitiveness as an international hub for tourism professionals, noting that MGM has maintained a partnership with UTM for a number of years, including a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed in 2024 and several youth talent development programmes. “Through this donation, MGM hopes to further support the nurturing of tourism professionals for Macau’s cultural and tourism industries, empowering the next generation with the knowledge and skills needed to thrive,” Feng said.
The ceremony marked the first in a series of planned donation agreements between UTM and Macau’s integrated resort (IR) enterprises, the statement said, adding that further partnerships would be organised to pool resources from different sectors in support of the university’s development and strengthen the talent base for cultural and tourism development in the Greater Bay Area (GBA).
Kenneth Feng Xiaofeng (left), CEO and executive director of MGM China Holdings, and Cheung Kin Chung, chair of the Executive Committee of the UTM Development Foundation, pose with their signed certificates during yesterday’s signing ceremony on the public Macao University of Tourism’s Taipa campus. – Photo: Khalel Vallo
