Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, meets with the Deputy Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, Mr Feng Wei.
The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, said the updated boundaries for Macao’s waters and land areas would further assist Macao’s long-term progress, especially economic diversification and sustainable development. Mr Chui made the remarks in a meeting with the Deputy Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, Mr Feng Wei, at the Government Headquarters on Tuesday (5 January). Mr Feng led a delegation of representatives from the mainland authorities for an inspection tour of the city’s newly demarcated waters and land boundaries. Mr Chui stated the Government would make all efforts to ensure a smooth transfer of such boundary management responsibilities from the neighbouring authorities that previously held such responsibilities. The Government would also draw up a long-term plan for the newly demarcated 85-square-kilometres of waters and a land area where the Border Gate with Zhuhai is located, he said. In the meeting, the Chief Executive said Macao people were delighted to learn of the new boundary demarcations, which had been announced in Decree No. 665 of the State Council on 20 December 2015. He expressed his sincere thanks for the support of the Central Government and the mainland authorities – especially the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council and the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao SAR – as well as the Guangdong provincial and Zhuhai municipal governments. The Government would further explore opportunities with regard to the mutually beneficial development of Macao and Guangdong Province. Mr Chui said this would be based on the successful existing structure provided by the Framework Agreement on Cooperation between Guangdong and Macao. Mr Feng said the relevant mainland authorities had been working closely with the Macao Government since the issuance of Decree No. 665 by the State Council. This was in an effort to support Macao’s economic diversification, to promote closer Guangdong-Macao cooperation, and to ensure smooth and effective operation of the Pearl River Delta. The discussions at the joint working meeting between the Government and the delegation – as well as three cooperation agreements signed on Tuesday related to the management of waters administered by the Macao SAR – were indicators of the direction for further development, Mr Feng said. Officials at the meeting included: the Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao SAR, Mr Yao Jian; the Secretary for Security and interim Director General of the Macao Customs Service, Mr Wong Sio Chak; the Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Mr Raimundo do Rosário; the Chief-of-Office of the Chief Executive’s Office, Ms O Lam; the Director of the Marine and Water Bureau, Ms Wong Soi Man; the Director of the Cartography and Cadastre Bureau, Mr Cheong Sio Kei; and Consultants of the Chief Executive’s Office, Mr Kou Chin Hung and Mr U Man Fong. Representatives of the mainland authorities that were present at the meeting included: the Vice-Minister of Civil Affairs at the Ministry of Civil Affairs, Mr Gong Puguang; the Chief Security Officer of the Ministry of Transport, Mr Wang Jinfu; the Chief Engineer of the Ministry of Water Resources, Mr Wang Hong; the Deputy Director of the State Oceanic Administration, Mr Zhang Hongsheng; and the Deputy Director General of the National Administration of Surveying, Mapping and Geoinformation, Mr Li Weisen.