HKUST Receives Donation from Dr Lau Wah Sum to Support Chinese Medicine Research to Overcome Abuse of Antibiotics on Fish and Livestock

28 Dec 2017

Dr Lau Wah Sum made a generous donation to HKUST to support Chinese medicine research to overcome abuse of antibiotics on fish and livestock. (From Right) Dr Lau Wah Sum, Director of HKUST’s Center for Chinese Medicine R & D and Chair Professor of Life Science Prof Karl Tsim and HKUST Executive Vice-President and Provost Prof Wei Shyy.

Officiating guests at the naming ceremony at Lee Shau Kee Library Dr Lau Wah Sum Refreshment Zone. (From left) HKUST Founding President Prof Chia-Wei Woo, Vice-President for Institutional Advancement Dr Sabrina Lin, Dr and Mrs Lau Wah Sum, Executive Vice-President and Provost Prof Wei Shyy, Director of HKUST’s Center for Chinese Medicine R & D and Chair Professor of Life Science Prof Karl Tsim (2nd from right) and other guests.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) received a generous donation from Dr Lau Wah Sum, a philanthropist and long term supporter of HKUST, for herbal research to overcome abuse of antibiotics on fish and livestock. Antibiotics are commonly used in livestock breeding, which in turn linked to the occurrence of superbug, affecting the safety of our food chain. HKUST’s herbal research would shed new lights to a natural solution.

In recognition of his generosity and support, HKUST would name the Refreshment Zone in the Lee Shau Kee Library as Dr Lau Wah Sum Refreshment Zone. It was also a joyous occasion to celebrate Dr Lau’s 90th birthday in advance. HKUST Executive Vice-President and Provost Prof Wei Shyy officiated the naming ceremony, which was also attended by the Founding President Prof Chia-Wei Woo, Vice-President for Institutional Advancement Dr Sabrina Lin, Director of HKUST’s Center for Chinese Medicine R & D and Chair Professor of Life Science Prof Karl Tsim and other senior management.

Supporting the development of HKUST has been a cause close to Dr Lau’s heart. In his remark, Dr Lau said he was delighted to be able to contribute to the research on safer livestock feed. “I had seen practitioners pouring buckets of antibiotics into the feed to keep their livestock healthy. It is imperative to find a natural and sustainable solution to tackle this challenge.” he said.

Prof Shyy expressed his gratitude to Dr Lau’s generosity, “Dr Lau has been a great supporter since the planning of HKUST, we are greatly honored to have his commitment and continued support to our University. As a research university since its inception, we would continue to bring our research to new heights for years to come.”

Prof Tsim, whose center would be leading the research said “The non-medical parts of the Chinese medicine are of tremendous value, if we could better utilize this resources, we could achieve a more sustainable development. Moreover, this aligns with the national vision of “Healthy China 2030” to achieve a comprehensive and systematic healthcare system for China.” The donation will be supporting Prof Tsim’s research on Chinese medicine, to combat the abuse of antibiotics in fish and livestock, ensuring a safe and healthy food chain.

Dr Lau was the Founding Treasurer of HKUST and Chairman of the HKUST Education Trust from 1986 to 2000. Dr Lau is a professional accountant and had worked with Swire Group, Hong Kong Government, Mass Transit Railway Corporation and Sun Hung Kai International Ltd. He had held various roles in public services for Hong Kong including being Chairman of the Urban Renewal Authority, Chairman of the Land Development Corporation, Members of the Legislative Council, Agriculture & Fisheries Department’s Fisheries Development Loan Fund Advisory Committee, Fish Marketing Advisory Board and many others.