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From long-term and macro perspectives, the latest revision made by the Mainland authorities to the Facilitated Individual Travel (FIT) policy would be positive to the development of Macao's tourism industry, the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Mr Chui Sai On, said today. Mr Chui was attending a banquet for the 36th Skal Asian Area Congress this evening when he was asked by the press about the effect on Macao due to the tightening of applications for travel documents under the FIT policy. He said that it would be positive to the long-term development of the industry, and that he was confident that the growth in tourist arrivals would be in line with the government's projection. Tourist arrivals and spending was on the rise since the implementation of the FIT policy in July 2003, yet it took a long time planning in many aspects, including infrastructures construction and human resources training, to ensure a healthy and diversified tourism industry, which he believed was critical to the whole sector.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, visited Anshun this morning as he continued on his three-day visit to the southwestern China province of Guizhou. In the evening, the Government of Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) hosted a banquet to thank the warm reception accorded to them by the Guizhou authorities. In a message of thanks, the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Francis Tam Pak Yuen, said the current visit had broadened the Macao Government's and business sector's understanding of Guizhou and facilitated exchanges between the two places. Despite the geographical distance, economic and cultural exchanges had been on a steady rise and some businessmen in Macao see Guizhou as a stage for new ventures, Mr Tam said. He said Macao was adamant in promoting all kinds of reforms to facilitate its business environment, and he invited people from all walks of life in the two places to enhance exchanges and co-operation. In Anshun in the morning, the Chief Executive and the Macao delegation attended an introductory briefing on the development of the city. The Secretary of CPC Anshun Municipal Committee, Mr Chen Haifeng, said Macao and Anshun could co-operate on tourism industry, in which both hold great advantages. He explained that Aushun possessed rich tourism resources, while Macao had a well-established market and mature management expertise in the industry. Mr Ho and the delegation attended a welcome luncheon hosted by the Anshun Municipal Government and visited a famous attraction later in the afternoon. The Chief Executive and the Macao delegation are scheduled to return to Macao in the late evening on completion of their visit.
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(Macao - 26 May 2007) The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah said today a revision in the Individual Visit Scheme would promote quality enhancement in Macao's tourism industry. Mr Ho said it was normal and rational to review and revise the Scheme after it has been implemented for some time."It would not come to a stop and would not reverse the growth in Macao's tourism industry, though a slight adjustment is expected. "It is not likely to pose any negative effect on Macao¡¦s tourism industry and the SAR's revenue," he said. Mr Ho said the new arrangement would contribute to a more rational development in Macao¡¦s tourism and related industries, promoting the development in quality instead of mere quantity, as continued rapid growth would also pose stresses on infrastructures and related industries. "The Mainland will continue to support Macao¡¦s development in all aspects including the healthy growth in tourism industry." Mr Ho also said Macao would continue to support the Central Government’s ban on gambling by Mainland officials. The Individual Visit scheme was introduced in 2003, under which residents for a number of Guangdong cities could visit Macao on their own instead of in group tours. The scheme was then extended to residents of other provinces. On his visit to Guizhou, Mr Ho said it fostered a better understanding of the province's vast natural resources and its great potential in the tourism industry. Mr Ho said Guizhou had entered a new phase of development and many new industries were emerging, creating many business opportunities for Macao entrepreneurs. He said the SAR Government would continue to promote trade and tourism co-operation between Macao and Guizhou as well as encouraging establishments of Macao enterprises in Guizhou.
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The 36th Skål Asian Area Congress swung open its doors today to top-notch tourism personnel and leaders from all over the world, who will in a two-day congress held at the Macau Tower Convention and Entertainment Center, probe into the current trends of tourism development and share their insights and valuable experiences in crisis management. João Manuel Costa Antunes, Director of Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO), Chairman of the Macau Organizing Committee for the 36th Skål Asian Area Congress and Chairman of the General Assembly of Skål Macau, Phillip Sims, Vice President of the Executive Committee of Skål International, Earl Wieman, President of Asian Area of Skål International, Nuno Jorge, President of the Board of Directors of Skål Macau, Jim Power, Secretary General of Skål International, members of the Commission for Tourism Development and representatives of the local tourism trade are among the 200 guests and Skålleagues taking part in the congress, which features themed presentations, President’s Meeting, business to business workshops, site inspections of convention and exhibition venues and tourist attractions. João Manuel Costa Antunes, Phillip Sims, Earl Wieman and Nuno Jorge delivered speeches at the opening ceremony. Deputy Director of MGTO Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes conducted a brief presentation on Macau’s latest tourism development, which was followed by an introduction on the business tourism development of Macau by Mike Williams, Consultant for Business Tourism Development of Macau, and a session on Crisis Management by Bert van Walbeek, a consultant of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) and an expert on Crisis Management. Bert van Walbeek’s expertise with Crisis Management started with the First Gulf Crisis. He was a member of the PATA Bali Task Force in 2002 and has conducted seminars on Crisis Prevention and Reputation Management in Bali, Bangkok, Beijing, Colombo, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Taipei and Wuhan. Mike Williams has been involved in international sales and marketing in both the leisure and business events industry for over 27 years. This includes working in a senior role with the Australian Tourism Commission (now Tourism Australia), and he was the General Manager Sales for the Melbourne Convention & Visitors Bureau which has played a major part in positioning Melbourne as one of the world’s most successful convention destinations. Mike has held several industry leadership positions including Chair of the Best Cities Global Alliance, National President of Meetings and Events Australia (MEA), and Councilor on the Business Events Council of Australia. The 36th Skål Asian Area Congress Gala Dinner will be held on May 27 at Wynn Macau and Secretary for Social Affairs and Cultural Chui Sai On will address the congress. Founded in 1932, Skål International is a professional organization of tourism leaders around the world, promoting global tourism and friendship. Headquartered in Spain, it is the only international group uniting all branches of the travel and tourism industry. Its members are managers or executives directly involved in tourism management, sales and promotions, in specified travel and tourism businesses, including: airlines, cruise companies, travel and tour operators and agencies, tourism organizations, governments and non-government tourism councils, hotels, convention centers, travel media etc. Skål International today has approximately 22,000 members in 500 Clubs throughout 90 nations/regions. Macau Skål International was officially established in 1979, with currently 37 active members from hotels, airlines, tourism studies institutes and restaurants, in addition to associate members and honorary life members. Back in 1981 Macau co-hosted the Assembly together with the Skål Club of Hong Kong, while in 1994, Macau Skål International hosted the 25th Skål Asian Assembly on its own. The 37th Skål Asian Area Congress will be held in Koh Samui and the 2008 Skål World Congress will take place in Taipei.
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Western China could provide ample business opportunities for Macao entrepreneurs, the Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, said in the Sichuan capital city of Chengdu today. Mr Ho, in the southwestern province for the opening of the 8th Western China International Economy and Trade Fair, said this at the meeting with the Secretary of CPC Sichuan Provincial Committee, Mr Du Qinglin, and the Governor, Mr Jiang Jufeng. Mr Ho said the close and long-term relationship enjoyed by Macao and Sichuan facilitated exchanges between businessmen from the two places. He said he believed that Sichuan companies could maximise Macao as a platform to explore opportunities in the Portuguese-speaking countries. Likewise, Sichuan and western China could also provide ample opportunities for Macao business people.
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The Secretary of CPC Sichuan Provincial Committee, Mr Du Qinglin, briefed the Chief Executive on the recent developments in the province. Mr Du said Sichuan could provide agricultural and other products to Macao, and the two places could further co-operate in different areas. Mr Ho and his delegation arrived in the afternoon and visited the Jinsha Site Museum soon afterwards. Later, they attended a welcome banquet for the 8th Western China International Economy and Trade Fair. The Vice Premier, Mr Zeng Paiyan, who officiated at the opening of the fair, toured the exhibition hall together with Mr Ho.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, is in Sichuan today to attend the opening of the 8th Western China International Economy and Trade Fair. The Chief Executive and members of the government delegation are scheduled to travel on to Guizhou tomorrow for a three-day visit. Mr Ho told reporters before his departure that his visit to Sichuan and Guizhou is aimed at boosting Macao's relation with these two provinces in the Pan-Pearl River Delta region. He said that added objectives of the visits are to promote Macao's convention and exhibition business, as well as its services as a business hub for the two provinces. When asked, Mr Ho stressed that the Government fully respected press freedom, and would protect it according to the law. The Government would never tolerate any violation of the freedom of the press by governmental agencies or departments, he said.
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The Government is taking a host of initiatives to increase the number of parking spaces, the Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Mr Lau Si Io, said today. After a meeting at the Legislative Assembly, Mr Lau told the press that the Government had decided to allocate more spaces for motorcycles when a number of new parking lots open later this year. Moreover, the Government was in discussions with private developers urging them to provide public car parking in new buildings. Furthermore, more parking spaces will be come on stream when parking lots in public housing buildings start to operate. On the issue of property disputes caused by the so-called ''silk paper contract'', Mr Lau said the Government had no intention to demolish buildings constructed on these contracts. Renovation applications for homes in bad conditions on land on such contracts would be considered on a case-by-case basis by the Government, Mr Lau said. However, he stressed that the Government would never allow for change of land use for undeveloped land on ''silk paper contract''.
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Included in the Programme of Cooperation in the Area of Migration and Asylum between the Macao SAR and the European Union, the Secretary for Security will preside over the opening ceremony of the Pan-Asian Seminar on Security Documents, which will take place at 17H00, on 27 May 2007, at the Macao Grand Prix and Wine Museum, of the Tourism Activities Centre(CAT). This Seminar is part of the MigraMacau Project, which is technically and financially assisted by the European Union, under the AENEAS Programme. With an overall budget of 626.131 Euros, the MigraMacau Project is supported in 80% by the European Union (500,904, 80 €) and the remaining 20% by the Macao SAR. The training activity will start on 28 May in the Congress Hall of the Tourism Activities Centre (Rua Gonzaga Luis Gomes, N.º 431) and will run daily, from 09H00 to 17H00, until 8 June.
The Seminar will count on the participation of highly qualified trainers from Portugal, Germany, Ireland, Macao and Hong Kong SARs, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, as well as 30 trainees from the Macao, and Hong Kong SARs, PRC, ASEAN countries and 5 observers from the Asia-Pacific region. The Seminar will last for 2 weeks and the main objective is to provide all the participants with up-to-date training on security documents as well as with the latest tools in verification and control of travel documents and fraud detection at border control points.
It includes a theoretical and a practical part and will offer the trainers and trainees, the opportunity to handle security documents and to use the technical tools to analyse genuine documents and detect possible frauds. To achieve these goals, all the participants will have the chance to: - Handle all types of document samples, substrates of paper and polymers used in the production of security documents; - Familiarize themselves with the most recent trends of fraud in security documents. - Handle the most recent technical equipment for document examination; - Visit the Macao Identification Department (DSI), the Portuguese Consulate, where security documents are issued, and the Macao Government Printing Bureau. - Exchange information so that they can adequately combat the use of fraudulent travel documents at their border control. In this Seminar, participants will get the opportunity to see and handle the most modern equipment for security document analysis available in the market today. For this purpose, companies specialized in this field are invited to participate in the “workshops”, to demonstrate their latest Technical Equipment. The Cabinet of the Secretary for Security is responsible for the coordination of the Seminar, which is being implemented by the Macao Immigration Department in partnership with the Portuguese Immigration Service (SEF), and being supported by other Macao SAR government departments and also the collaboration of the Portuguese Consulate General in Macao.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah will lead an official delegation to Chengdou, Sichuan, tomorrow to attend the 8th Western China Fair. Upon his arrival, Mr Ho will meet with the Sichuan leaders. In the evening, the delegation will attend the opening ceremony of the fair and enjoy a cultural performance. The next day (25 May), they will visit to the Macao’s booth and the Sichuan’s booth respectively. The delegation will then leave for Guizhou, a city in the western China, for a three-day official visit on the afternoon of 25 May. The aim of this visit is to broaden cooperation with Guizhou at all levels, which is also a means to deepen the relationship with the 9+2 provinces and cities. During his stay there, the Chief Executive will meet with Guizhou leaders and attend a conference about trading in Guizhou and Macao. The delegation will visit some famous scenic places to take in Guizhou’s successful experience in developing tourism. Members of the official delegation includes the Secretary for Economic and Finance, Mr Tam Pak Yuen, the Chief of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Ho Veng On, the President of IPIM, Mr Lee Peng Hong. Meanwhile, IPIM has also organised a business delegation comprising some 100 participants to Guizhou to study business opportunities.
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A delegation led by the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Francis Tam Pak Yuen, is in Kazakhstan to attend the annual ministerial meeting of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), which opened yesterday in the city of Almaty. The theme for the three-day conference was to enhance economic growth in the region to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set out by UNESCAP. At the meeting, Mr Tam said that the Macao SAR Government would continue to support UNESCAP and help push for regional development. Members of Macao's delegation included the Acting Director of the Macao Economic Services, Mr Sou Tim Peng; Acting Deputy Director of Statistics and Census Bureau, Ms Kong Pek Fong, and the Director of the Social Welfare Bureau, Mr Ip Peng Kin.
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