NCPA Forges Strategic Ties in Beijing on Education, Technology and Talent Development
From 15 to 19 October 2025, the Nanyang Centre for Public Administration (NCPA) delegation led by Professor Liu Hong, Associate Vice President and Director (Research and Executive Education), along with Dr Wang Hang, Deputy Director and several doctoral students, visited Beijing. The visit advanced NCPA’s agenda of fostering global collaboration through high-level dialogues on academic excellence, technological innovation, and enhancing alumni engagement and professional network in China.
Deepening Inter-University Cooperation and Expanding New Fields of Talent Research
On 15 October, Professor Tang Zhishu, President of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine (BUCM), met with Professor Liu Hong and the NCPA delegation at the BUCM. They held in-depth exchanges with BUCM’s senior leadership team; Mr Liu Jiangping, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee; Ms Gong Yanbing, Director of the Centre for Faculty Development; Ms Wang Xiaoxiao, Deputy Director of the Organisation Department; Ms Wang Xueqian and Ms An Chao, both Deputy Directors of the Office of International Cooperation.
Both sides agreed to deepen their partnership by expanding student exchanges, cultivating globally minded talent in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), and enhancing joint scientific research. This will include utilising shared laboratories for research on disease and drug development, while also exploring new cooperation in frontier fields like nano- and materials science.
On 16 October, Professor Liu Hong visited the Centre for China and Globalisation (CCG) in Beijing. At the meeting with Mr Zhao Zhanjie, Deputy Director of the Government Project Cooperation Department at CCG, Professor Liu advocated for “talent” to be considered as a central, independent domain in global research and policy evaluation frameworks, as a forward-looking approach to global governance.
Sharing Singapore’s Innovation Model at HICOOL Summit
From 16–18 October, Professor Liu was invited to participate in the high-profile HICOOL 2025 Global Entrepreneur Summit. Themed ‘Building a Global Innovation and Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Hub’, the summit opened with a keynote address by Mr Yin Li, Member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Secretary of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee. The mega event drew over 13,000 entrepreneurs from more than 50 countries to exhibit innovative breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, biomedicine, and new energy.
A highlight of the opening ceremony was the formal establishment of the ‘Overseas Universities' Science and Technology Achievement Transformation Base’. The launch was presided over by Professor Liu Hong together with a distinguished panel of guests, including Nobel Laureate, Professor Barry Marshall, Dr Pornchai Mongkhonvanit, President of Siam University, Thailand and Mr Li Yi, Director of the Beijing Municipal Education Commission. 
The next day, Professor Liu delivered a keynote address at the summit entitled ‘Driving Technological Innovation and Economic Development Through the 'Triple Helix' Model: Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Case Study,’ in which he explained how NTU’s model of university–industry–government partnership supports innovation. This is encapsulated by the vision ‘Singapore to the World, the World to Singapore’ and its strategic ‘Nurture-Innovate-Translate’ framework. After his speech, he toured the summit’s high-tech exhibition area, visited NTU’s booth ‘Artificial Intelligence & Robotics Research Centre’ and engaged with innovators on the latest breakthroughs in intelligent systems, robotics, and their potential applications in public service delivery.
Advancing Global Governance Dialogue
On 17 October, Professor Liu graced the Tongzhou Global Development Forum, hosted by Renmin University of China (RUC) and co-organised by the government of Beijing's Tongzhou District. The forum titled ‘Coexistence in Harmony: The Foundation and Order of Global Development’ gathered dignitaries and renowned scholars from many countries, including the United States, Britain, France, Russia, and other nations.
At a roundtable on ‘Humanity 2050: Promoting Comprehensive Development of People and Society,’ Professor Liu offered a historically grounded analysis of global development, comparing institutional evolution across time and space. He shared Singapore’s experience of balancing stability and innovation through a ‘dynamic governance’ approach and described NCPA’s framework of cross-disciplinary curricula, international exchange, and leadership training.
That afternoon, in a sub-forum on ‘Strategic Sovereign Wealth & Global Development in the World Market,’ together with Ms Cai Yuqing, Research Associate, NCPA, Professor Liu outlined a ‘Singapore Model’ in which sovereign wealth funds act both as ecosystem builders and stabilisers in global capital flows and delivered a fresh lens view of capital strategy with relevance for global policy.
Empowering the Next Generation: Student Engagement and Alumni Connections
The successful trip was not only a dialogue among senior management and scholars but also provided valuable practical learning opportunities for NTU students, particularly three doctoral scholars from NTU’s School of Social Sciences, Ms Zhang Jiawang, Ms Liu Youtong and Ms Hong Yulin. They gained new knowledge, grasped cutting-edge perspectives, and established academic networks from the interactions with experts and scholars from around the world. The students unanimously reflected on the trip as a highly rewarding experience that enriched their intellectual perspectives, allowing them to truly appreciate the irreplaceable value of international exchange in broadening academic thinking and life experience.
