Manuel Caldeira Cabral, Portugal’s minister of economy, recently visited the University of Macau (UM) and was warmly received by UM Rector Wei Zhao and Vice Rector (Research) Rui Martins. Both parties had an in-depth discussion on how to nurture bilingual language professionals to promote the economic development of Macao and Portugal. Cabral praised UM for its contributions to the training of bilingual language professionals, adding that he will help to increase collaboration between UM and higher education institutions in Portugal.

During the meeting, Vice Rector Martins told Cabral and his colleagues about UM’s latest developments, the ‘4-in-1’ model of education, and recent achievements in the training of bilingual professionals in Portuguese and Chinese. He also noted that UM is an important member of the Association of Universities of Portuguese Language and has been working hard to increase collaboration among all member universities. Cabral praised UM for its policy on Portuguese language education, adding that the university provides a very good environment for teaching and learning Portuguese, which can help Macao residents to improve their Portuguese language skills and understanding of the Portuguese culture.

In addition, Cabral noted that Portuguese-speaking countries highly recognise Macao’s advantages in education and its role as a platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. Therefore, he plans to vigorously promote collaboration in student exchange programmes as well as teaching and learning between UM and Portuguese universities, including the University of Lisbon, University of Porto, University of Minho and Nova University of Lisbon.