Honorary University Fellows
Mr Wai Nam Chan was born in 1919 in Chaozhou, Guangdong Province. In 1936, he graduated from the Hanshan Normal University and moved to Hong Kong the following year.
Mr Chan established the Singapore Trading Company Limited in 1947 and the Ping Shan Enterprise Company Limited in 1964. Today, he remains Chairman of the Ping Shan Group of Companies, which focuses on animal husbandry, animal health products and food businesses.
Mr Chan is also a prominent and long-time leader of the Chiu Chow business community, a former Chairman of the Hong Kong Chiu Chow Chamber of Commerce, and the Founding President of the Federation of Chiu Chow Organizations in Hong Kong.
Mr Chan has been a strong supporter of this University. He is an Honorary President of the HKU Foundation and has made great personal contributions to the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole at HKU.
He is also the Founding President of Friends of the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole, and has mobilized many prominent fellow business leaders and entrepreneurs to support Professor Jao’s scholarship.
With Mr Chan's counsel and sponsorship, the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole at HKU has become a research centre of national distinction and international fame, which has in turn strengthened the University’s standing as well.
Under his leadership, the Hong Kong Chiu Chow Chamber of Commerce has also supported various HKU scholarships and fundraising events over the past decade.
In order to promote and advance traditional Chinese culture and values, Mr Chan has contributed to cultural and educational activities in both Hong Kong and China.
Mr Chan was awarded a Fifth Class Badge in the Order of the White Elephant of Thailand in 1983. He was made an Honorary Citizen of Guangzhou in 1991, an Honorary Citizen of Shantou in 1993, and an Honorary Citizen of Chaozhou in 1995.
He was awarded a Bronze Bauhinia Star in 2000, and the Minor Planet Number 8126 was named after him in 2008.
Citation delivered by Professor Chack Fan LEE, Director of HKU School of Professional and Continuing Education
At the age of 91, Mr CHAN Wai Nam looks more like a god of longevity than a star, but as you will see in a moment, he is indeed a shining star.
Mr Chan was born in 1919 in Chaozhou, Guangdong Province. In 1936, he graduated from the Hanshan Normal University and moved to Hong Kong the following year.
Mr Chan established the Singapore Trading Company Limited in 1947 and the Ping Shan Enterprise Company Limited in 1964. Today, he remains Chairman of the Ping Shan Group of Companies, which focuses on animal husbandry, animal health products and food businesses.
Mr Chan is a prominent and long-time leader of the Chiu Chow business community, a former Chairman of the Hong Kong Chiu Chow Chamber of Commerce, and the Founding President of the Federation of Chiu Chow Organizations in Hong Kong.
Mr Chan has been a strong supporter of this University. He is an Honorary President of the HKU Foundation and has made great personal contributions to the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole at HKU. He is also the Founding President of ‘Friends of the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole’.
The friendship between Mr Chan and Professor Jao actually spans across half a century. Mr Chan has a saying that he often shares with his friends, and I quote: “It’s easy to find a rich man, but it is very hard to find a master (富人易得，大師難求)”. Throughout this fifty years of friendship, Mr Chan has been a genuine admirer and staunch supporter of Professor Jao’s scholarship. Not only that. He has also mobilized a large number of business leaders to support the study and promotion of Chinese culture, including cultural exchanges with other nations.
So today, with Mr Chan's counsel and sponsorship, the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole at HKU has become a research centre of national distinction and international fame, which has in turn strengthened the University’s standing as well.
Moreover, under his leadership, the Hong Kong Chiu Chow Chamber of Commerce has also supported various HKU scholarships and fundraising events over the past decade.
Mr Chan was awarded a Fifth Class Badge in the Order of the White Elephant of Thailand in 1983. He was made an Honorary Citizen of Guangzhou in 1991, an Honorary Citizen of Shantou in1993, and an Honorary Citizen of Chaozhou in 1995.
Mr Pro-Chancellor, I mentioned earlier that Mr Chan was a star, and while it is true that he was awarded a Bronze Bauhinia Star in 2000, there are not many among us who can claim to have a planet named after them!
Yes, in 2008, Minor Planet Number 8126 in the main asteroid-belt region of the Solar System was named the 'Chan Wai Nam' star. So you see? He really is one.
It gives me great pleasure, Mr Pro-Chancellor, to present Mr CHAN Wai Nam for the Honorary University Fellowship, in recognition of his stellar contributions to Hong Kong and academia.