Official opening of “Macau Business Tourism Centre”

The “Macau Business Tourism Centre” of Macau Government Tourist Office, conveniently located at Senado Square, was officially opened (April 18) today. The opening ceremony was officiated by Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of the Macau SAR Government, Chui Sai On. Accompanied by guests, Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Chui Sai On performed the eye-dotting ceremony of the lion dance and lit the firecrackers in front of the building to mark the official opening of the “Macau Business Tourism Centre”. The opening ceremony concluded with a plaque-unveiling by the Secretary. Addressing the ceremony, Director of MGTO João Manuel Costa Antunes said that the large-scale convention, exhibition and entertainment facilities soon to be opened in Macau will provide favorable conditions for the development of meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions, and Macau has to capitalize on the opportunities to nurture the territory into a prominent business tourism destination in the region. He stressed that this is the right time to establish a business tourism center within the structure of MGTO to promote the development of business tourism in Macau. He pointed out that the objective of setting up the “Macau Business Tourism Centre” is to establish a platform for the business tourism industry to communicate; to understand the needs of the local industry and strengthen the liaison work among the trade. Guests present at the opening ceremony included officials from governmental departments, members of the Committee for Tourism Development, members of the Macau Grand Prix Committee, representatives from the convention and exhibition industry, travel industry and media. Members of the Media Mega Familiarization Group invited by MGTO to visit Macau also participated in the opening ceremony to learn about the function of the Centre with the other guests. The “Macau Business Tourism Centre” is located at Senado Square, the former headquarters of MGTO. Covering a total area of 2,187 sq meters and costing MOP7 million to renovate, this five-storey building includes an information counter and a gallery on the ground floor; a computer research centre on the first floor; marketing, industry support, research, training and bidding units on second floor; events/projects unit on the third floor and a video and slides archive on the fourth floor. To celebrate the opening of the “Macau Business Tourism Centre”, the gallery on the ground floor will stage a “Macau World Heritage” photo exhibition to magnify the promotion effect of “ 2006 Macau World Heritage Year”.