Honorary University Fellows

Citation delivered by the Acting Dean of Business and Economics, Professor Richard Wong:

Born in America and educated in Guangdong, Dr James Tak Wu graduated from Lingnan University in Guangzhou in 1947 and proceeded to build a catering business with his brother in 1956. Over the next half century, their brand 'Maxim's' would become a household name in Hong Kong, and today the Maxim's Group operates over 400 local outlets, with over 12,000 staff. Dr Wu established the first joint-venture for the Group with the Mainland in 1979, providing catering services to airlines, and its catering and dining ventures can now be found throughout the Mainland and overseas as well.

Dr Wu has been a dedicated supporter of tertiary education in Hong Kong as well as on the Mainland. Working with the alumni of Lingnan University College in Sun Yat-Sen University, he convinced China's State Education Commission in 1988 to re-establish the institution. Over the past 15 years, he has worked tirelessly to support and develop his alma mater, and has helped build collaborative programmes with universities in the United States, France, and throughout China. He is currently Honorary Chairman of the Board of Trustees and Chairman of the Development & Planning Council, whose focus is on nurturing professional management talent for Southern China.

Dr Wu holds Honorary Doctorates from the Sun Yat-Sen University in Guangzhou and Springfield College in Massachusetts. In 2001, he was awarded a Silver Bauhinia Star by the HKSAR Government, and named an \\\'Honorary Citizen of Guangzhou' by the Guangzhou Government in 2003.

It gives me great pleasure, Mr Pro-Chancellor, to present Dr James Tak Wu for the Honorary University Fellowship, in recognition of his contributions to Hong Kong and academia.