'I am a firm believer in the spirit of public-private partnership, and I am excited by the advanced work Berkeley is undertaking,' says billionaire philanthropist Li Ka-shing. 'The work and research being done there will result in phenomenal benefits to mankind.'

Chancellor Robert Birgeneau and other university officials met with the Hong Kong billionaire and philanthropist Li Ka-shing in Hong Kong Monday to finalize the gift, which has been in the works for years, UC Berkeley spokesperson Robert Sanders said.

Li's donation will jump-start planning on a new $160 million scientific research center slated for construction in 2007. The building will be named the "Li Ka-shing Center for Biomedical and Health Sciences."

Philanthropic Spree

"This is a major gift that not only sets us on the critical path to completing the building phase of the Health Sciences Initiative, but also represents a strong endorsement from a world-leading philanthropist for the innovative and progressive biomedical science program at UC Berkeley," Birgeneau said in a statement.

Li's gift is the latest in a philanthropic spree which topped nearly $1 billion worldwide through the Li Ka-shing Foundation and other private charitable foundations.

The donation comes on the heels of a $128 million gift by the foundation to the University of Hong Kong's medical program, the largest contribution in Asian history, last month.

Li, ranked 22 on the 2005 Forbes Magazine's World's Richest People list, amassed his nearly $12 billion fortune through business ventures ranging from plastic manufacturing to real estate management through the past four decades.

Stem-Cell Biology, Brain Imaging and Neurological Science

As part of the university's Health Science Initiative, a campus-based program launched in 1999 to address the most pressing issues in biomedicine on an interdisciplinary level, the center will house programs in new fields of research in stem-cell biology, brain imaging and neurological science.

Funding for the center, which is set to open in 2009, has reached its halfway point thanks in part to Li's donation, Sanders said.

The donation will not be limited to the center alone and is set to extend through research programs at the university, he said.

The gift is the next step in his nearly seven-year relationship with the university that totaled $1.4 million prior to Monday's gift. Li's past donations include a two-year $100,000 donation for the Berkeley Scholars Program and an endowment for the Li Ka-shing Chair in Health Management at the Haas School of Business.

"I am a firm believer in the spirit of public-private partnership, and I am excited by the advanced work Berkeley is undertaking," Li said in a statement Monday. "The work and research being done there will result in phenomenal benefits to mankind."

Humble Beginnings

Li's wealth is a far cry from his humble beginnings in Chaozhou, China where his work ethic and strong commitment to learning grew after his own education took a back seat after his father died when he was 12.

He established the Li Ka-shing Foundation in 1980 to coordinate donations for education, medicine, and cultural and community welfare.

Li's contribution comes conveniently at a time when the university is reeling from a lackluster state budget and has been increasing its efforts to find private donors for additional financial support for its academic goals.