On June 4, MA Yanming, President of Zhejiang University, met with Yasutomo Suzuki, Governor of Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, on Zijingang Campus. The governor was accompanied by Kazuyuki Hizume, President of Shizuoka University, and Yasuyuki Imai, President of the University of Shizuoka. The visit included a roundtable discussion focused on promoting innovation, entrepreneurship, startup incubation, culminating in the signing of a four-party memorandum of cooperation.
President MA Yanming extended a warm welcome to Governor Suzuki Yasutomo and his delegation. He highlighted Zhejiang University’s longstanding ties with both Shizuoka University and the University of Shizuoka, which date back to the 1980s and 1990s. Over the years, these partnerships have fostered fruitful collaboration in fields such as law, agriculture, and medicine, significantly contributing to academic and cultural exchanges between the two regions. He emphasized that Zhejiang University, in partnership with the Shizuoka Prefectural Government, Shizuoka University, and the University of Shizuoka, will focus on key areas such as the silver economy and elderly care services to drive the growth of related startup ventures. These efforts aim to strengthen the friendship between Zhejiang Province and Shizuoka Prefecture and support the broader relationship between China and Japan.
Governor Yasutomo Suzuki expressed his gratitude for Zhejiang University’s warm reception and highly praised its achievements in nurturing startups. He noted that Shizuoka Prefecture has enjoyed a sister-province relationship with Zhejiang Province since 1982, and the two sides have engaged in exchanges and cooperation across multiple sectors for more than four decades. The prefecture places immense importance on startup incubation, recognizing its role not only in invigorating the local economy but also in offering innovative solutions to pressing social challenges. He called the newly signed four-party cooperation memorandum a meaningful step forward and expressed his hope for deeper collaboration among all participating institutions.
During the visit, the delegation toured the Zhejiang University National Science Park and visited Hangzhou Maitong Medical Technology Co., Ltd., one of the park’s incubated enterprise. The guests learned about the university’s progress in transforming scientific research into real-world applications and its contributions to fostering emerging industries.
Also present at the meeting were CHEN Jiangfeng, Deputy Director-General of the Foreign Affairs Office of Zhejiang Provincial People’s Government, ZHOU Jianghong, Vice President of Zhejiang University, and representatives from Zhejiang University Holding Group, the Office of Global Engagement, Guanghua Law School, the School of Public Health, and the Institute of Technology Transfer.
In addition, President Kazuyuki Hizume of Shizuoka University visited Zhejiang University’s Zhijiang Campus, where he was received by Vice President ZHOU Jianghong. The two universities signed a renewed inter-university cooperation memorandum and a student exchange agreement. A disciplinary dialogue in law was also held, with both sides exchanging views on interdisciplinary development.
Adapted and translated from the article by the Office of Global Engagement, Zhejiang University
Translator: FANG Fumin
Photo: Office of Global Engagement, Zhejiang University
Editor: TIAN Minjie
Source: President Ma Yanming meets with Governor of Shizuoka Prefecture
