Global history was made in Shantou, China on December 16, 2015, with the groundbreaking of the Guangdong Technion – Israel Institute of Technology (GTIIT), located in Guangdong Province. A partnership between Technion and Shantou University, GTIIT will offer high-level, innovative and research-oriented undergraduate and graduate education.
GTIIT is more than a new, global academic facility, it also signifies new networks in the global map of cooperative research. “In this day and age, no one has an iota of doubt that technological innovation underpins a country’s ability to create collective wealth, and that it is the key impetus to individual success. Creativity is the defining centerpiece of our time — powering us into the future,” said Li Ka-shing. “The establishment of a Technion campus in China is one more proof that Israeli innovation is breaking down geographic borders,” said former President of the State of Israel Shimon Peres who attended the ceremony. “China is one of Israel’s major partners in technology and high-tech and more than 1,000 Israeli companies are active in China. I hope that the economic cooperation between the two countries will continue to expand, as both countries have much to share with, and learn from, one another.”
GTIIT will comprise three units: a College of Engineering; a College of Science; and a College of Life Science. It is eventually expected to enroll some 5,000 students made up of 4,000 undergraduate and 1,000 graduate students. GTIIT is fully supported by both the Guangdong Provincial Government and the Shantou Municipal Government. These two governments granted the land for the university, and the Li Ka Shing Foundation has been supportive in the planning and construction of the interim campus. Li Ka-shing and his Foundation initiated the partnership between the Technion and Shantou University in 2013.
- GTIIT – architectural rendering
