EN.MUHAMMADIYAH.OR.ID, SHENZHEN – The Muhammadiyah Central Board’s Council for Higher Education, Research, and Development (CHERD) is exploring partnerships with the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen (CUHK-Shenzhen) and Foshan Electrical and Lighting Co., Ltd. (FSL) in China.
The council’s agenda in China took place on October 14–15, 2026, and included the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with CUHK-Shenzhen, followed by an industrial visit to FSL.
The agreement covers several potential areas of collaboration, including joint and dual degree programs, faculty and student exchanges, and joint research. Priority fields include artificial intelligence, data science, biomedical sciences, advanced manufacturing, and sustainable development.
Ahmad Muttaqin, Secretary of the council, said the partnership with CUHK-Shenzhen was a strategic step toward strengthening the internationalization of Muhammadiyah-’Aisyiyah universities, particularly through education, research, and academic mobility.
“The partnership with CUHK-Shenzhen provides a strategic foundation for Muhammadiyah-’Aisyiyah universities to improve the quality of their education and research to meet international standards. Through research collaboration, student exchanges, and joint degree programs, we hope to develop outstanding human resources with global competitiveness who are ready to contribute to the advancement of Muhammadiyah and the nation,” Muttaqin said in a statement received by the editorial team on Friday (23/10).
CUHK-Shenzhen President Yangsheng Xu welcomed the partnership. This collaboration, he said, would bring opportunities to strengthen academic ties between Indonesia and China while opening new avenues for research collaboration.
He noted that Indonesian students had established a strong academic track record and represented the largest international student community at CUHK-Shenzhen. The partnership, he added, would further strengthen academic relations between the two sides and foster innovative research with a broad impact.
Connecting University Research with Industry.
During the industrial visit to FSL, the council also explored opportunities for collaboration in applied research, student internships, and technology transfer for engineering and science faculties at Muhammadiyah-’Aisyiyah universities.
Ahmad Muttaqin emphasized the importance of connecting universities with industry so that research findings can be developed into solutions that address the needs of businesses and society.
“We hope this visit will open the door to cooperation in applied research, technology transfer, and industrial internship opportunities for students and lecturers in engineering and science faculties at Muhammadiyah-’Aisyiyah universities. This will help ensure that innovations developed by these universities met the needs of global industry,” he said.
The MoU with CUHK-Shenzhen and the exploration of collaboration with FSL are expected to mark the beginning of more concrete initiatives in education, research, academic mobility, innovation development, and stronger links between Muhammadiyah-’Aisyiyah universities and global industry. (Bhisma)
