Xu Mingjin, CPPCC member, the chairman of the Shenzhen Xiangbin Group, has said that letting Taiwan universities establish satellite campuses in Pingtan would be a good way to promote cross-Straits educational exchanges and cooperation, and help Pingtan's development, the China Economic Net reported, on March 12.

Currently, the mainland has more than 40 universities that are recognized in Taiwan and have been since 2010. Meanwhile, universities in Taiwan have been opened to mainland students, with around 1,500-2,000 of them choosing Taiwan as their study destination every year. Already, by 2008, approximately 14,000 Taiwan students had studied in mainland universities.

Taiwan's higher education includes vocational schools, independent colleges, and universities, with vocational schools focusing on applied science and developing technicians, while universities aim at cultivating special talent.

But higher education there is also facing difficulties since the birthrate is dropping and the number of aged is growing, so it appears that universities on Taiwan are oversupplied with faculty and staff members. To deal with this difficulty, experts have called for stronger educational exchanges and cooperation, especially with the mainland, while allowing more mainland students to study on the island.

One place that has taken this seriously is the Pingtan Comprehensive Pilot Zone, Fujian province, which was set up as a pilot area to explore cross-Straits cooperation by using its geographical advantages, which is why Xu suggested it.

In the area of education exchange and cooperation, Pingtan can turn to the Hengqin Special Zone, in the city of Zhuhai, Guangdong province, for a successful example. The University of Macau is building a satellite campus there and this is already accelerating local economic development, while improving the local education situation. What may be more important could its role as a place where people can come for exchanges and greater communication.