In 1980, the Chinese government established the Chinese Research and Conservation Centre for the Giant Panda (CRCC) in the Wolong Giant Panda Nature Reserve at Sichuan. Initially, a basic veterinary hospital and some simple facilities were built in 1983 to rescue, rear and breed giant pandas. These facilities were designed to cope with a capacity of 10 giant pandas. Since then, the hospital has undergone renovations to enlarge its capacity.
The Hong Kong Society for Panda Conservation committed HK$ 1 million to help the hospital procure research and medical equipment. On March 24, 2003, our Trustee, Mr Matthias Li, and the Society Director, Ms Suzanne Gendron, presented the first donation of HK$200,000 to the CRCC to support the renovation. The ceremony was officiated by Mr Zhang Hemin, the Director of Wolong Nature Reserve Administration, and Mr Li Qingwen, the Secretary of the Communist Party. The event attracted both Chengdu and local media.
The new veterinary hospital is now named Panda Conservation Hospital, and features the inscribed Chinese words, "sponsored by The Hong Kong Society for Panda Conservation and Hong Kong Ocean Park".
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