THE Shenzhen Municipal Government has recently allocated 22.6 hectares of land in the high-tech park in Nanshan District, for classrooms and research centers of four Hong Kong universities.

The four universities are Hong Kong University of Science & Technology (HKUST), Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Polytechnic University and City University of Hong Kong, which will begin construction of its Shenzhen research center April 3.

Two 12,500-square-meter plots of land, located in the Virtual University Park in the high-tech park, were given to HK Polytechnic and City University in 2005, while 15,000 square meters of land was allocated to HKUST and 25,000 square meters to Chinese University late last year, the Takung Pao, a Hong Kong newspaper said.

HKUST will raise nearly 100 million yuan (US$12.82 million) to build its research institute. When completed, 60 percent of the floor space will be used for labs and other research facilities, while the rest will be used for classrooms and administrative offices. Senior professors from the university's business school will teach courses for local managers. Research at the center will cover subjects like information technology, electronics, biomedicine, nanometer technology, IC design and wireless communications.

The research center of City University, which will begin construction next month, will cost 70 million yuan.

Near the City University's research center will be the new branch of HK Polytechnic, with an estimated investment of 50 million yuan. It will house a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) lab, a new materials lab, a disaster prevention lab, a weaving technology lab and a venture capital research center.

Four shuttle buses began operating daily between the high-tech parks in Shenzhen and Hong Kong in April last year, covering the distance in 20 minutes.

So far, five Hong Kong universities have opened research centers in the Virtual University Park.

Editor: Wing