On July 25, 2026, the Fifth Meeting of the Sixth Standing Council of the World Association of Abacus and Mental Arithmetic (hereinafter referred to as WAAMA) was convened in Beijing, China. President Ou Wenhan attended and addressed the meeting. Vice Presidents Hsiao Chiu-Yung (Taiwan, China), Sally Chou (the United States), and Alexander K. Taslim (Indonesia), Standing Council Members Zhongying Jin (Australia), Shumeiko Elena (Russia), and Fotofili Napa'a (on behalf of Tongan Standing Council Member Loani Tahitu'a) attended the meeting. Secretary-General Cheng Beiping presided over the session. Huey Chiang Huang (the United States), Vice President of the Third and Fourth Councils of WAAMA, and Assistant Secretaries-General Zhao Xiangyi and Yan Xiaoming attended the meeting as non-voting delegates.
(Meeting site)
The meeting noted that WAAMA, upholding the principles of openness, inclusiveness, pragmatism and prudence, has been steadily expanding its membership, which now covers 64 member units across 23 countries and regions, thereby enabling more people to benefit from the promotion and development of abacus and mental arithmetic.
The meeting emphasized that advancing the healthy development of the global abacus and mental arithmetic cause requires sustained efforts in three key areas: First, actively expanding the membership network. It is hoped that all standing council members will continue to recommend eligible abacus and mental arithmetic organizations to join WAAMA, so as to help abacus culture take root in more countries and regions. Second, strengthening the sharing of experience. The Secretariat should further leverage its role as an information platform to facilitate exchanges of experiences and practices among member units in areas such as teaching methodologies and competition organization, so as to achieve shared outcomes. Third, deepening research on key topics. It is essential to keep pace with the times and conduct in-depth research on cutting-edge directions such as the integration of artificial intelligence with abacus and mental arithmetic. Solid research findings should be produced to respond to public concerns, fully demonstrate the scientific value and cognitive benefits of abacus and mental arithmetic, and provide a solid theoretical foundation for the sustained and healthy development of the cause.
The meeting decided to convene the Sixth Meeting of the Sixth Standing Council of WAAMA in Hong Kong, China in October 2026, and preliminarily proposed relevant agenda items. The meeting also reviewed a progress report on WAAMA's research project Analysis of International Abacus and Mental Arithmetic Education Models and Reference of Development Experience. The admission of Master Mind Plus Center For Mental Maths, Qatar as a Council Member of WAAMA, and the admission of PERSATUAN MENTAL ARITHMETIC MALAYSIA (PMAM) 2015 as a non-Council Member of WAAMA were reviewed and approved.
The attending standing council members actively offered suggestions and expressed unanimous support for holding the next standing council meeting in Hong Kong, and showed strong interest in topics such as the integration of artificial intelligence with abacus and mental arithmetic.
(Group photo of the delegates)
The meeting was held in conjunction with the 9th WAAMA Abacus and Mental Arithmetic Competition in Beijing, China, during which 254 contestants from 28 teams representing 11 countries and regions competed, demonstrating the spirit of "Faster, Higher, Defter, and Stronger" in abacus and mental arithmetic, with a record-breaking participation scale.