News

According to the monitoring data of Gamma Radiation recorded for the past 24 hours (12th May 10:01 till 13th May 10:00) by the Taipa Grande Station of the Macao Meteorological Bureau, the Gamma-ray absorbed dose rate per minute ranges between 0.1169 and 0.1283μGy/h (micro Gray / hour) which is far more below the warning level of 0.35μGy/h. The Macao Meteorological Bureau will continue to pay close attention to the radiation level in Macao. If any abnormalities being discovered, we will release related message to the public immediately and inform relevant government departments to adopt relative contingency measures.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that visitor arrivals in package tours decreased by 2.3% year-on-year to 498,972 in March 2011. Visitors from Mainland China (364,333); Taiwan, China (26,760); and the Republic of Korea (19,912) increased by 2.5%, 6.1% and 40.5% respectively. However, decrease was observed in the visitors coming from Japan (19,452), Hong Kong (19,125), Thailand (10,072) and Malaysia (9,305). In the first quarter of 2011, visitor arrivals in package tours decreased by 1.8% year-on-year to 1,407,876. In March 2011, Macao residents travelling outbound in package tours decreased by 13.3% year-on-year to 16,042, attributable to the notable decrease in residents travelled in package tour to Japan (-83.1%). The most popular tour itineraries were Mainland China (82.5% of total); Thailand (3.8%); and Taiwan, China (3.8%). In the first quarter of 2011, outbound residents in package tours increased by 6.7% year-on-year to 54,998. Meanwhile, outbound residents travelling under own arrangements using services of travel agencies increased by 18.9% year-on-year to 41,371; the main destinations were Mainland China (41.1% of total); Hong Kong (20.3%); Taiwan, China (19.8%); and Thailand (7.2%). In the first quarter of 2011, outbound residents travelling under such arrangements increased by 25.6% year-on-year to 126,540. At the end of March 2011, total number of available guest rooms of hotels and guest-houses increased by 981 (+5.1%) year-on-year to 20,129 rooms, with that of 5-star hotels (12,035) accounting for 59.8% of the total. Hotels and guest-houses received 677,869 guests in March 2011, up by 6.0% year-on-year, with the majority coming from Mainland China (55.1% of total) and Hong Kong (18.0%). The average length of stay of guests decreased by 0.01 night to 1.5 nights. The average occupancy rate of hotels and guest-houses was 81.4%, up by 3.5 percentage points year-on-year; average occupancy rate of hotels stood at 82.0%, with 4-star hotels leading at 88.1% and the average for 5-star hotels reached 79.4%. Hotel guests increased by 1.9% year-on-year to 1,918,955 in the first quarter of 2011; average occupancy rate of hotels and guest-houses stood at 81.0%, up by 1.9 percentage point compared with 79.1% from a year earlier. In the first quarter of 2011, visitor-guests of hotels and guest-houses accounted for 61.5% of the total number of tourists (overnight visitors), higher than 60.6% in the same period of 2010.
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According to the monitoring data of Gamma Radiation recorded for the past 24 hours (11th May 16:01 till 12th May 16:00) by the Taipa Grande Station of the Macao Meteorological Bureau, the Gamma-ray absorbed dose rate per minute ranges between 0.1169 and 0.1283μGy/h (micro Gray / hour) which is far more below the warning level of 0.35μGy/h. The Macao Meteorological Bureau will continue to pay close attention to the radiation level in Macao. If any abnormalities being discovered, we will release related message to the public immediately and inform relevant government departments to adopt relative contingency measures.
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In this year's Macao Arts Festival (MAF), the Ruins of St. Paul's are no longer a mere performance stage, but emerge as the main attraction! Imbued with local, historical and cultural panache, the all-new programme Encounters: Audiovisual Mapping of the Ruins of St. Paul's will premiere at the 22nd Macao Arts Festival organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau, and run from 13th to 22nd May. The programme - produced by Spain's Telenoika.Net (Audiovisual Open Creative Community) using advanced projection technology - seeks to ignite audience interest in the architectural beauty of the Ruins of St. Paul's, bringing a sense of visual enjoyment and pleasure to all spectators. For ten consecutive nights in May, the World Heritage Ruins of St. Paul's in Macao will be transformed into a digital drawing paper. In conjunction with originally composed music, sophisticated creative technology is used to create and display video images on the building façade.The projected content employs cinematography and storytelling techniques. The storytelling is divided into sequences of various motifs, which emerge from a script based on the architectural features and touching stories inherent in this World Heritage site.
Encounters is a programme tailor-made for the Ruins of St. Paul's by Spain's Telenoika.Net, a video production group founded in 2000 by a group of artists with a keen interest in audiovisual creativity. Over the past ten years, Telenokia has introduced various innovative audiovisual technologies to audiences worldwide, and earned an impressive reputation in the process. It takes about three months of creative development before the final performance can be presented to audiences. During the creative process, intricate measurements of the building contours are taken with the help of existing architectural plans and high-resolution images. The resulting 2D and 3D models are then projected onto the façade itself. After repeated technical tests, original music is added to the projected images. The entire process demands high precision technology and boundless creativity from the team.
Encounters: Audiovisual Mapping of the Ruins of St. Paul's will be staged at the Ruins of St. Paul's from 8:00pm and 9:00pm from 13th to 22nd May, with the duration of each performance approximately lasting 20 minutes. The general public is invited to appreciate this highly innovative and artistic performance. For further information about the programmes of the 22nd MAF, please contact the Cultural Affairs Bureau on (853) 8399 6699 or visit www.icm.gov.mo/fam.
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According to the monitoring data of Gamma Radiation recorded for the past 24 hours (11th May 10:01 till 12th May 10:00) by the Taipa Grande Station of the Macao Meteorological Bureau, the Gamma-ray absorbed dose rate per minute ranges between 0.1160 and 0.1291μGy/h (micro Gray / hour) which is far more below the warning level of 0.35μGy/h. The Macao Meteorological Bureau will continue to pay close attention to the radiation level in Macao. If any abnormalities being discovered, we will release related message to the public immediately and inform relevant government departments to adopt relative contingency measures.
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The Asia Pacific Regional Review Group (RRG) Face-to-Face Meeting under the International Cooperation Review Group (ICRG) of Financial Action Task Force (FATF) takes place in Macao SAR, from 11 to 13 May 2011. Delegates from 10 countries and reviewers from 9 jurisdictions and international bodies attend the meeting. Macao SAR Government collaborates with India as the co-chairs of RRG in Asia-Pacific region. The Asia Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG) is an autonomous and collaborative international organization founded in 1997 consisting of 40 members (including Macao SAR) and a number of international and regional observers. APG members and observers are committed to the effective implementation and enforcement of internationally accepted standards against money laundering and the financing of terrorism, in particular the Forty Recommendations and Nine Special Recommendations on Terrorist Financing of the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF), which is the global standard-setting body for anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing. As a means of focusing on threats to the financial system, the FATF has established a process for identifying high-risk or non-cooperative countries and jurisdictions and recommending specific action through its International Cooperation Review Group (ICRG). In response to the G20 Leaders' request in April 2009, international organizations and standard setting bodies are urged to take more stringent follow-up actions on those jurisdictions failing to take adequate progress to address the deficiencies identified in the mutual evaluation process. In response to this, the FATF and its associate members including APG have revised their follow-up procedure and Regional Review Groups are formed under the ICRG to carry out the review process and monitor the progress of the actions taken by the jurisdictions. Since its acceptance as APG member in 2001 the Macao SAR Government has been actively participating in the international efforts against money laundering and terrorist financing, and such participation has brought great benefits to its own AML/CFT work. In this RRG Face-to-Face meeting, the Macao SAR Government collaborates again with experts from different international bodies and regions. Experience of countries being reviewed is also a valuable reference to others who take part in this occasion, including Macao SAR. On behalf of the Macao SAR Government, the Financial Intelligence Office (GIF) is the hosting agency of this RRG Meeting. Apart from its functions of collecting and analyzing suspicious transaction information, GIF is the coordinator of the Anti-money laundering Working Group whose members also include Independent Committee for the Exercise of Disciplinary Power over Solicitors, Public Prosecution Office, Commission Against Corruption, Unitary Police Service, Macao Customs Service, Legal Affairs Bureau, Law Reform and International Law Bureau, Economic Services Bureau, Financial Services Bureau, Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute, Monetary Authority of Macao and Judiciary Police. Since its establishment in 2002, the Interdepartmental AML Working Group has been facilitating coordination, cooperation, and information exchange among government agencies in Macao SAR that tasked with implementing AML/CFT measures. It has also been playing a major role in following up the implementation and recommendations given in the APG/OGBS Joint Mutual Evaluation Report (MER). Another contribution of the Working Group is in the formulation of the AML/CFT laws of Macao SAR and their further revision. Sub-working groups have also been formed for review and study purpose of money laundering risks in specific sectors. Intra-governmental cooperation of AML efforts and coordination of training among government agencies for enhancement of AML/CFT knowledge are also the major roles of the Working Group.
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Macao's Cultural Affairs Bureau (CAB) and the Institute for Tourism Studies (IFT) are joining forces to co-ordinate an Arts and Culture Management Human Resources Training Programme. The threefold purpose of the programme is to promote the development of the cultural and creative industries in Macao, to enhance operations within local arts associations and enterprises and to strengthen the human resource pool in the field of Arts and Culture Management. The Programme includes both the "Arts and Culture Management Human Resources Training Programme", launched by the CAB, and a "Certificate in Arts Administration", offered by IFT. Subsidies are available for students enrolling in this Certificate Programme. Through these two curricula, the organisers hope to prepare a greater number of arts management professionals for competent work in the industry, providing a foundation for the long term development of the cultural and creative industries in Macao. IFT Offers "Certificate in Arts Administration"
IFT begins its "Certificate in Arts Administration" programme in June, and the registration period lasts from the 9 to 20 May. As a member of the Cultural Industry Committee, IFT proactively solicits suggestions from various sectors of the industry. Several seminars were held, attended by professionals in fields including visual media, product design, fashion design, fine art, literature and publishing, and among the many valuable issues raised was the demand for management professionals in the cultural and creative industries. In response, IFT immediately began preparing the Programme and arranging the related courses. Because of the fact that in recent years Chinese Taiwan has proven itself a very successful example of cultural and creative industry development, IFT will be inviting professors from Chinese Taiwan to teach in this new certificate programme.
The "Certificate in Arts Administration", consisting of a total of 234 learning hours, encompasses 6 courses: Arts Administration and Management, Cultural Economics, Museum Studies, Appreciation of Chinese and Western Art, Exhibition and Event Management and Practical Official Writing Skills. Programme applicants must have completed secondary school, hold a Macao ID and be at least 18 years of age. Those possessing a bachelor degree and/or related work experience will be given preference. To encourage applications from local arts associations and to optimise the development of local arts and culture, the CAB is offering subsidies to students enrolled in this programme. Students who achieve an attendance rate of over 80% and pass the examination receive a full tuition refund. This certificate programme is a part of the Arts and Culture Management Human Resources Training Programme. For more information, please call IFT registration at 8598-3160. CAB launches Arts and Culture Management Human Resources Training Programme
The CAB launches its Arts and Culture Management Human Resources Training Programme in September. The programme aims to educate cultural associations on planning, co-ordination, event management and technical management through work practice. Each arts association registered with Macao SAR Government is entitled to recommend one staff member to apply for subsidised training. The subsidies offered are divided into three types according to the actual training hours received per month. Associations may apply for training that suits the needs and limitations of their individual circumstances, and a corresponding subsidy will be provided by the CAB, allowing current and potential arts management talents to gain practical experience working within cultural associations. The application period for subsidised training begins in September. To apply, candidates must have completed secondary school, hold a Macao ID, be recommended by a local registered association. Candidates must possess any of the following qualifications or circumstances: (i) bachelor degree or higher in arts and culture, humanities or social sciences; (ii) five years' work and operational experience in local cultural associations; (iii) completion of any arts administration course of at least 120 learning hours; (iv) enrolment in the IFT "Certificate of Arts Administration" programme. The three categories of subsidies correspond to the following amounts of training hours per month: Type 1 – 144 training hours per month; Type 2 – 80 training hours per month; Type 3 – 40 training hours per month. Once the application is accepted, the CAB will offer a subsidy of MOP80 per training hour. For further information about the Arts and Culture Management Human Resources Training Programme, please call Ms. Ng at 8399-6617 or Ms. Tsang at 8399-6394.
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According to the monitoring data of Gamma Radiation recorded for the past 24 hours (10th May 16:01 till 11th May 16:00) by the Taipa Grande Station of the Macao Meteorological Bureau, the Gamma-ray absorbed dose rate per minute ranges between 0.1160 and 0.1291μGy/h (micro Gray / hour) which is far more below the warning level of 0.35μGy/h. The Macao Meteorological Bureau will continue to pay close attention to the radiation level in Macao. If any abnormalities being discovered, we will release related message to the public immediately and inform relevant government departments to adopt relative contingency measures.
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According to the monitoring data of Gamma Radiation recorded for the past 24 hours (10th May 10:01 till 11th May 10:00) by the Taipa Grande Station of the Macao Meteorological Bureau, the Gamma-ray absorbed dose rate per minute ranges between 0.1160 and 0.1291μGy/h (micro Gray / hour) which is far more below the warning level of 0.35μGy/h. The Macao Meteorological Bureau will continue to pay close attention to the radiation level in Macao. If any abnormalities being discovered, we will release related message to the public immediately and inform relevant government departments to adopt relative contingency measures.
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"Macao Ideas", the first Macao products display centre to promote products "Made in Macao", "Macao Brand", "Macao Design" and "Sole Distributorship of Portuguese-Speaking Countries Products", will have its grand opening on 9 May 2011 from 6p.m. to 8p.m. in the Exhibition Hall located on the ground-floor of the Tourism Activities Centre ("CAT"). Cohesion of Macao People's Beliefs, Creativity and Capacity; Demonstration of the Diversity of Macao Products Macao Ideas is being set up by the Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM), to cope with the policies of Macao SAR government in supporting the development of local small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). It will serve as a brand building product display centre for a wide collection of branded products from Macao enterprises. Since Macao's Handover in 1999, Macao brands have started to gain an international reputation and have been widely accepted by the general public, hence the establishment of "Macao Ideas" which is a cohesion of Macao people's belief, creativity and capacity, demonstrating the diversity of Macao products. East Meets West; Traditional Links with Innovative Ideas
The total area of the exhibition venue covers 595 square metres. The design is inspired by the microcosm of the city, with exhibition shelves with Sino-Portuguese characteristics or individual themes, linked with contemporary style. "Macao Ideas" exhibits a wide range of Macao's high-quality merchandise, while aiming to reveal Macao's capacity and potential in production, services and design, so as to serve as a direct communication channel between Macao enterprises and buyers from abroad, as well as to open up overseas marketing and business opportunities. To Assist in the Commercialisation, Industrialisation and Globalisation of Macao Products "Macao Ideas "is not only a new arena to raise international awareness of Macao Products, but also a platform to enable "MinM" products, fashion designs and creative products to become more commercialised, industrialised and globalised. Several themed areas are set up including as the "MinM" Area, where a variety of high quality, stylish and unique MinM branded products are showcased. Besides, in the area of Macao Productivity and Technology Transfer Centre, masterpieces of a number of fashion designers are exhibited. Local unique cultural and creative products are also displayed at the venue. Professional Business-Matching Service - Increase Publicity and Added-value of Local Branded Products to Tap Into Overseas Markets "Macao Ideas" will also provide on-site professional business-matching services to help local enterprises advertise and promote their products, enhance publicity and added value to Macao's distinctive merchandise, which will bring business opportunities to local producers in overseas markets as a result of worldwide promotion. "Macao Ideas" will be fully operational after its opening; visitors are welcome to visit the exhibition venue during its opening hours: Monday to Friday, 10:00a.m. to 6:00 pm (closed on Tuesdays and public holidays); Saturday and Sunday, 2:00pm to 6:00pm. There is a comfortable meeting area in "Macao Ideas", which provides an integrated and convenient meeting point for those who are looking for business matching opportunities; furthermore, a sophisticated database of all exhibits and exhibitors is available and professional staff will be on site to provide detailed information and business advisory services. Fashion Show by local models - Demonstrating the Unique Life Style of Macao
So far, "Macao Ideas" has collected hundreds of different exhibits, in order to highlight the high-quality merchandise, Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) has invited local models to conduct a series of fashion shows at the opening ceremony, they will be wearing locally designed, locally manufactured and locally branded garments . They will also show the unique lifestyle of Macao through different themed catwalk performances.
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