The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On (3rd right), meets with the Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, Mr Xu Shaoshi.
The Government has highlighted three approaches to furthering Beijing-Macao cooperation – including featuring Beijing’s role as a centre for commerce and trade services during the coming edition of the Macao International Trade and Investment Fair (MIF). The Government’s steps in deepening bilateral cooperation with Beijing also cover youth affairs and the setting up of a regular communication mechanism in order to boost the scale of such bilateral cooperation. The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, made the comments in Beijing this morning (Thursday) during a meeting with the Secretary of the Communist Party of China Beijing Municipal Committee, Mr Guo Jinlong. A partnership between Beijing and Macao – to start with Beijing’s official participation in the 21st edition of MIF, an event to be held in Macao in October – would cover a number of topics including matters connected with public administration and justice; economy and finance issues; and social and cultural affairs, Mr Chui said. Further topics for cooperation would include education, healthcare, culture, sports and tourism, he said. Mr Guo said during the meeting that Beijing would give its full support to the coming edition of MIF. He noted there would be room for further Beijing-Macao cooperation in the field of tourism, since Beijing was being positioned to develop as a city for tourism. In the afternoon, Mr Chui met the Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, Mr Xu Shaoshi, to discuss the initiative of Macao’s first Five-Year Development Plan. Mr Chui told Mr Xu about the three key findings regarding the opinions collected during the consultation period in Macao concerning the proposal for the Plan: first, a majority of the opinions gathered expressed support for the Government initiative that established the Plan; second, that there was active participation from members of the public during the consultation period; and third, some of the opinions expressed showed high expectations regarding the Plan, as well as high expectations in relation to standards of public governance. The Government expected that a final version of the Five-Year Development Plan could be released in September, said Mr Chui. The Chief Executive also briefed Mr Xu on how the Five-Year Development Plan initiative had been created, including the research, public consultation and analysis that had gone into it. The Government had started in 2014 to prepare the initiative, with a view to ensuring Macao’s economy was robust enough to cope with any changes in domestic or international circumstances; to press ahead with the city’s sustainable development; and to enhance the respective livelihoods of Macao people. Mr Chui thanked the Commission for the support it had given regarding the Five-Year Development Plan initiative. Mr Xu said the Commission would provide the necessary assistance to help Macao further incorporate its efforts with that of the country’s 13th Five-Year Plan. Officials attending the morning meeting with Mr Guo Jinlong included: the Deputy Secretary of the Communist Party of China Beijing Municipal Committee, Mr Zhang Gong; and the Director-General of the Hong Kong and Macao Office of the Beijing Municipal Government, Mr Zhao Huimin. Macao’s representatives included: the Chief-of-Office of the Chief Executive’s Office, Ms O Lam; the Director of the Office of the Macao Special Administrative Region in Beijing, Ms Hong Wai; and the Consultant to the Chief Executive’s Office, Ms Lei Ngan Leng. Representatives of the National Development and Reform Commission attending the afternoon session included: the Vice Chairman, Mr Hu Zucai; the Director of the Department of Development Planning, Mr Xu Lin; and the Deputy Director of the Department of International Cooperation, Mr Li Xuedong. Macao officials present at the afternoon session included Ms O Lam and Ms Lei Ngan Leng.
