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On a tour of the Ministry of Education in June 1979, Sun Yun-hsuan, Premi er of the Executive Yuan, stated that one of the focal points of his administration would be to promote Chinese studies and strengthen services for Sinologists, both local and foreign. During the National Construction Conference that same year, a proposal was made for the establishment of a Chinese studies inform-ation center, and a directive issued for the Ministry of Education to assist in the drafting of a Chinese studies plan.
During the following year, the Ministry of Education placed the project for establishing a Chinese studies center in the hands of the National Central Library. A steering committee composed of scholars and experts was formed in June 1981, and the formal planning process commenced. During a meeting on September 30 of the same year, the steering committee announced the estab-lishment of the Chinese Studies Information and Services Center. The Center's research capabilities were subsequently enhanced, and its name was changed to the Center for Chinese Studies in November 1987.
Up to the present, the Center for Chinese Studies has made a number of important achievements, including establishing a collection of Chinese studies research materials, providing reader services, creating a database of prominent Sinologists, setting up a research grant program for foreign scholars, publishing Chinese studies works and periodicals, holding international academic confer-ences and participation in overseas book shows. Through these activities, the Center has established a sound foundation for research in the Chinese human-ities and international exchange in the Chinese studies field.