Opening Ceremony of the “Guangdong & Macao Branded Products Fair 2018”
The “Guangdong & Macao Branded Products Fair 2018” (2018GMBPF) – which is jointly organised by the Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) and the Department of Commerce of Guangdong – kicks off today on 27th July and will run for three consecutive days in Hall B of the Convention and Exhibition Centre at the Venetian Macao. With this year marking the 10th anniversary of GMBPF, the Fair will not only extend its function as a platform for “going global and attracting foreign investment”, but will also include more elements of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area, thus creating greater synergy and increasing the effectiveness of the Fair.
The opening ceremony took place at 10am, where five co-operation memoranda and co-operation agreements were signed. Mr. Leong Vai Tac, Secretary for Economy and Finance of Macao SAR, said at the ceremony that entering its 10th anniversary, GMBPF has gradually grown to become an annual grand event of economic and trade co-operation between Guangdong and Macao that encompasses elements of trade co-operation, cultural exchanges, shopping and leisure. It has also become a platform for Macao to help the Bay Area have exchanges and co-operation with the outside world so that it can ‘go global and attract foreign investment’. At the same time, GMBPF is also an event which Guangdong Government hugely supports in order to help Macao diversify its economy. To work in synergy with the Guangdong Government and Macao Government and to facilitate the development of the Belt and Road, elements about countries and cities along the Belt and Road have been introduced to the event over the years, including the “Indonesia Products Exhibition & Sales Area” since 2016, the “Myanmar Products Exhibition & Sales Area” since 2017 and this year’s “Malaysia Products Exhibition & Sales Area”. Furthermore, this year’s event has enriched its contents to support the development of the city cluster in the Bay Area by setting up the “Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area Exhibition Area”, hosting the “Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area Enterprise Roundtable” and introducing many more enhancements, so as to organically combine and amplify the influence of the two major elements, i.e., the building of the Belt and Road and the development of the Bay Area. The Secretary hoped that the collaboration between Guangdong and Macao would continue to extend and exert its every strength to nurture GMBPF as an exchange and collaboration platform for the branded products in the Bay Area so as to facilitate the upcoming Framework Agreement on Cooperation between Guangdong and Macao.
Mr. Lin Ji, Deputy Secretary General of the People’s Government of Guangdong Province, said in his speech that the import and export trade between Guangdong and Macao amounted to USD $2.29 billion in 2017. Moreover, there were a total of 752 direct investment projects by Macao in Guangdong, involving USD $5.98 billion of contracted foreign investment value and USD $580 million of actual foreign investment value. Furthermore, 13 enterprises were established in Macao after filing records, with the agreed amount of Chinese investment increasing to USD $43.43 million and the actual Chinese investment at USD $1.31 million, all of which have proved the fruitful results of Guangdong-Macao co-operation. The Department of Commerce of Guangdong Province attaches great importance to GMBPF and has organised 132 enterprises from Guangdong Province to take part in GMBPF, spreading among 183 booths. GMBPF is taken to a new height this year through the integration of online and offline practices, the combination of history and future, as well as the introduction of the “Youth Entrepreneurship Exhibition Area”.
During the “Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area Enterprise Roundtable” that took place on the first day at the event, Mr. Jackson Chang, President of Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute, mentioned in his speech that IPIM will further improve the function and role of its Guangzhou Representative Office by providing more precise and effective consultation, business matching and liaison services in order to better serve the enterprises and investors in the Bay Area as well as to comprehensively assist investors to implement their projects through IPIM’s “Service on Doorstep” and “One-stop Service”.
Congjiang exhibition area set up for the first time to enable enterprises to effectively support poverty easing
To be in line with the “Agreement on Promoting Foreign Trade and Development via MICE Industry” signed by IPIM and Congjiang county of Guizhou Province, a Congjiang exhibition area is set up at the venue. The exhibition area aim to showcase the cultural products, agricultural and animal husbandry products from Congjiang county, so that on one hand, the public can be given a chance to purchase Congjiang special products while on the other hand support can be given to Congjiang county to reduce the poverty there. There was also a “Congjiang County of Guizhou Province Business Seminar” today, bringing in information about the major investment projects in Congjiang and broadening the economic exchange between Macao and Congjiang County.
Ms. Wang, one of the exhibitors who is from Guizhou Province and specializes in embroidery with ethnic features, expressed that it was her first visit to Macao. Taking advantage of this opportunity, she took with her embroidery handicrafts with typical ethnic features, including embroidered cloth, straps and embroidered shoes to test the water in Macao. The result was satisfying as she already received several orders on the first day alone.
Another exhibitor Mr. Wang, also from Guizhou Province, showcased the signature Congjiang pork – a pillar of poverty alleviation in Congjiang County. He also brought with him processed pork products, including lard, pork jerky, and chili products. He hoped to sell his original and authentic products at the exhibition and extend the reach to Macao and even to the Pearl River Delta region.
Assorted branded products and activities that bring much excitement
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of GMBPF, a variety of activities will be held. This year, more “Belt and Road” and “Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area” as well as young entrepreneurship elements have been added, attracting more residents and tourists to visit and shop for their favourite branded products including daily necessities, jewellery, apparels, handicrafts and foods. In addition, many check-in points and games area are set up at the venue to enrich visitors’ experience. The exhibition integrates the advantage of Macao as the commercial and trade co-operation service platform between China and Portuguese speaking countries, the mascot “Ba Ba” for the 10th anniversary of GMBPF and and its friends, as well as VR experience, to launch different creative activities including the “Amusement Wharf”, “The Florist’s Garden”, “Stroll and Seek” and “Ba Ba Treasure Hunt” at the exhibition area for visitors to enjoy.
The shows on the first day are indeed another excitement. The “Celebrity Cooking Live Show” took place this afternoon gave the shows an ever-better opening, followed by a “Battle between the World Cities of Gastronomy (Round 1)” between the legendary Macao Chef Antonieta Manhão and renowned chef He Huihong from Shunde, whose exquisite culinary art stopped the feet of many visitors. Successors of traditional cuisines of Macao and Shunde were also present to share interesting stories behind the delicacies and brought a variety of delicious snacks for everyone to taste. Many visitors had a great rewarding experience.
For the coming two days, more singing and dancing performances and lucky draws will be staged. The final round of “Celebrity Cooking Live Show - Battle between the World Cities of Gastronomy”, “Macao and Congjiang County Economic and Trade Cooperation Series – Sharing Session on Marketing Strategy on Branding and Exhibitions” and a number of product promotion sessions will take place on 28th July. The opening hours on 28th (Saturday) and 29th (Sunday) will be from 10am to 8pm and admission is free. To help realise the concept of public transport priority and green travel, four shuttle bus routes between the exhibition venue, northern district, central district and Taipa are available, with stops set up at Rua do Dr. Pedro José Lobo (Macao Square), Avenida do Conselheiro Ferreira de Almeida (near to the Pak Wai bus stop. At Rua Gago Coutinho), Rua do Mercade de Iao Hon (opposite Iao Hon Park and near to ISquare) and Avenida de Guimarães (Central Park, opposite Nova Park). Free parking spaces are available in Hall D and E of the Convention and Exhibition Centre. Due to limited availability, parking spaces are provided on a first-come-first-served basis. For more information about GMBPF, please visit our official website www.guangdongmacaofair.com, or contact us at (853) 8798 9636(phone), (853) 2872 6777 (fax), or follow us on WeChat “gmbpfair”, Instagram “gmbpfair”, or Facebook “Guangdong & Macao Branded Products Fair”.
Guests attending the opening ceremony included:
Ms. Chen Xing, Deputy Director-General of the Economic Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in Macao SAR and Head of Commercial Office; Mr. Xu Jun, Assistant Director-General of Economic Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macao SAR; Ms. Liu Yufei, Director of the Consular Affairs Department of the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of People’s Republic of China in the Macao SAR; Mr. Jackson Chang, President of Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute; Mr. Ma Hua, Deputy Director-Director of Department of Commerce of Guangdong Province; Mr. Tengku Sirajuzzaman, Consul-General of Malaysia in Hong Kong; Mr. Natan Kambuno, Trade Consul cum Representative of the Consul General of the Republic of Indonesia in Hong Kong; Mrs. Myat Thuzar Than, Consul-General of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; Mr. Lao Ngai Leong, President of the Association of Returned Overseas Chinese Macau; Mr. Kou Hoi In, President of Board of Directors of Macao Chamber of Commerce; Mr. Kelvin Tan Hai Ching, President of the Malaysia Macau Chamber of Commerce; Mr. Zhang Lei, Deputy Mayor of Yangjiang Municipal People’s Government; Ms. Yu Hongchun, Deputy Mayor of Chaozhou Municipal People’s Government; and Mr. Chen Fong, Deputy Secretary General of Foshan Municipal People’s Government.
