A massive earthquake, measuring 8.0 on the Richter scale, struck Sichuan on 12 May 2008. More than 80,000 people were killed and some five million were made homeless. The Club responded with an emergency relief donation and later pledged HK$1 billion to support a series of reconstruction and capacity-building projects.

In 2017, the Club and Sichuan agreed to use funds remaining from the Club’s donation to promote the sustainable development of Club-supported projects and to support bilateral exchanges, cooperation programmes and other charitable projects, such as facility enhancement and talent capacity building. Initiatives include the Sichuan and Hong Kong exchange programme launched in December 2017, with other projects having been launched since 2019.