On October 16, Chen Yulu, President of Nankai University, met with a delegation led by Fernando Alexandre, Portugal’s Minister of Education, Science and Innovation, at Haibing Center on Balitai Campus. Chen Jun, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Executive Vice President of Nankai University, also attended the meeting.

Chen Yulu extended a warm welcome to Alexandre and his delegation. He said that Nankai University maintains close cooperation with several Portuguese universities, particularly the University of Minho, with which it has jointly operated a Confucius Institute for 20 years. Through their shared efforts, the institute has achieved positive results in Chinese language teaching, teacher training and cultural exchanges. As the China–Portugal comprehensive strategic partnership continues to deepen, and as Nankai University marks its 107^th anniversary, the university hopes to use this visit as an opportunity to build on its academic strengths and existing partnerships. Nankai University is ready to deepen cooperation in education, science and technology with Portuguese universities and research institutions, jointly training of outstanding talent, advance scientific research and enhance people-to-people exchanges, opening a new chapter in China–Portugal cooperation.

Alexandre said that China and Portugal have a long history of friendly relations and that cooperation in education, science and technology, and people-to-people exchanges forms an important part of their bilateral partnership. The visit gave him a deeper appreciation of Nankai University’s distinguished academic heritage and strengths across disciplines. Building on existing cooperation, he looked forward to further deepening strategic collaboration, exploring opportunities in biomaterials, healthcare, medical research and personnel exchanges, and developing closer and more stable academic partnerships.

Alexandre and his delegation visited Nankai University’s College of Life Sciences, where the two sides discussed potential cooperation projects.

The delegation also visited Nankai University History Exhibition. Through historical documents and sudiovisual materials, the delegation gained a deeper understanding of the university’s development and achievements over the past century.

Nankai University’s educational cooperation with Portugal has been substantial and productive. The university has established partnerships with four Portuguese universities: the University of Lisbon, the University of Minho, the University of Coimbra and NOVA University Lisbon, and maintains ongoing exchanges in international Chinese language education, joint scientific research and personnel exchanges.

（Edited and translated by Nankai News Team.)