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The Signing Ceremony of the Agreement between the Government of the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the Republic of Serbia on Mutual Exemption of Visa Requirements took place in the Macao SAR Government Headquarters on 28 February 2012. The Government of the Macao SAR was granted the authorization from the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China to conclude the abovementioned agreement. The Secretary for Administration and Justice, Ms. Florinda da Rosa Silva Chan, and the Ambassador of the Republic of Serbia in Beijing, Mr. Miomir Udovicki, representing the Government of the Macao SAR and the Government of the Republic of Serbia respectively, signed the Agreement. After the Agreement enters into force, residents of the Macao SAR holding a valid Macao SAR Passport will be exempted from visa requirements when entering the Republic of Serbia for a stay of maximum 90 days. The effective date will later be announced. At present, a total of 94 countries or territories have agreed to grant visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to the holders of Macao SAR Passport.
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The Human Trafficking Deterrent Measures Concern Committee, in association with the Academy of Public Security Forces (ESFSM), organized the "Workshop on Combating Human Trafficking" (February 28) at the ESFSM. Participants include officers from the Unitary Police, Macao Customs, Public Security Police, Judiciary Police, Social Welfare Bureau and Heath Bureau. There were also participants from local NGOs including the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Caritas, the Macao Women's Association and the Kaifong Association of Macao. Topics of the workshop include global trends in human smuggling and trafficking, case studies, victim identification, victim protection and prosecution of human trafficking cases. Through this workshop, participants had the opportunity to learn and explore the knowledge on preventing and combating human trafficking crimes, so as to enhance their techniques on handling human trafficking cases and victims.
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Institute for Tourism Studies (IFT) holds IFT Healthy and Green Week from 27 Feb – 2 Mar. Mr. Cheong Sio Kei, Director of Environmental Protection Bureau, Ms. Gloria Wong, Secretary-General of Tourism Development Committee, Ms. Monie Kuok, Functional Head of Tertiary Education Services Office, Dr. Fanny Vong, IFT President, Ms. Florence Ian, IFT Vice-President and Ms. Diamantina Coimbra, Director of Tourism and Hotel School officiated at the Opening Ceremony which was held at IFT on 27 Feb. The aims of IFT Healthy and Green Week are to promote the attitude of pursuing healthy life and strengthen the eco-awareness of students and staff. With the support of students and staff, the Institute is able to head for a greener campus. It is hoped that a green message can be delivered to their families and also to the society. The Institute aims to promote healthy life style and develop green habits among institute members so as to raise people's awareness of protecting the environment daily. Dr. Fanny Vong said the Institute has been taken various measures to achieve the aims at saving energy and environmental protection. Some of the measures include: install heat recovery system that provides hot water to guestrooms; install solar photovoltaic modules that provide electricity so as to reduce electricity consumption and CO2 emission; use e-document to reduce paper consumption; use energy-saving lights; implement segregated recycling and launch food waste decomposer machine to treat food waste. The Institute is the first local institution of higher education to launch food waste collection programme. The organic fertiliser generated from the decomposer improves the quality of agricultural products without much pollution. The Institute is always willing to share experience with others. The programme has aroused interests of hotels and restaurants, local schools and organisations and some of them visited the Institute to learn about the difficulties and impacts of introducing food waste decomposer. With the valuable suggestions from in-house guests of Pousada de Mong-Há, the Pousada was first awarded Macao Green Hotel in 2007 and presented the silver award of Macao Green Hotel in 2010. In terms of management, the Institute established the Occupational Safety & Health and Green Committee which composed of members from all departments of the Institute. IFT also joined an energy management programme organised by Public Administration and Civil Service Bureau and Office for the Development of Energy Sector to timely update its environmental policy and measures, and maintain their efficiency. My Green Campus Logo Design Competition was held last year and called forth the participation of students and staff for building a green campus. During the IFT Healthy and Green Week, a series of activities are going to be held, including green walkers, organic planting, sport day, collection of second-hand items for re-use purposes, seminar on health topics. The other training unit of IFT – Educational Restaurant and Cafeteria for Students and Staff is providing healthy dishes in the week. Through the activities, it is hoped that the eco-awareness can be more concreted and IFT is going to work with the society to build Macao a livable city and maintain the sustainable development.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that total population was estimated at 557,400 as at 31 December 2011, an increase of 16,800 or 3.1% compared with the revised figure of 540,600 at end-2010. As regards the age structure, the adult population (aged 15-64) made up 80.8% of the total, up by 0.6 percentage point over 2010; the youth population (aged 0-14) and the elderly population (aged 65 and over) shared 11.8% and 7.3% respectively, down by 0.6 percentage point and 0.1 percentage point from a year earlier. In terms of gender structure, female accounted for 51.9% of the total population. In the fourth quarter of 2011, there were 1,752 live births and 448 mortality cases. For the whole year of 2011, total number of live births went up by 14.4% year-on-year to 5,852; gender ratio of the newborn was 109.7, corresponding to 109.7 male babies per 100 female babies. Number of mortality cases totalled 1,845 in 2011, up by 4.0% year-on-year; the top three underlying causes of death were Neoplasms, Diseases of the Circulatory System and Diseases of the Respiratory System. There were 720 cases of Notifiable Diseases reported in the fourth quarter of 2011. For the whole year of 2011, a total of 4,647 cases were recorded, up by 1.7% year-on-year, consisting mainly of Influenza (1,556 cases), Enterovirus Infection (1,184 cases) and Tuberculosis of Lung (339 cases). In addition, 1,046 cases of marriage registration were recorded in the fourth quarter of 2011. Total number of marriages rose by 14.2% year-on-year to 3,545 in 2011; median age of first marriage was 28.2 for male and 26.5 for female. In the fourth quarter of 2011, there were 888 Chinese immigrants with One-way Exit Permit moving to Macao and 267 illegal immigrants repatriated. In 2011, Chinese immigrants totalled 6,222 while 1,266 illegal immigrants were repatriated, down by 31.3% and 2.8% respectively over 2010. Number of non-resident workers stood at 94,028 at end-2011, an increase of 18,215 year-on-year; moreover, a total of 2,812 individuals were authorized to reside in Macao in 2011, down by 1,643 year-on-year. At end-2011, total number of households increased by 1.7% to 172,600, compared with the revised figure (169,700) of end-2010.
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The Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) announced that time series data on employment have been revised according to the results of the 2011 Population Census; the unemployment rate for October-December 2011 was revised from 2.1% to 2.2%, and the underemployment rate was revised from 0.9% to 0.8%. Results of the latest Employment Survey indicated that the unemployment rate for November 2011-January 2012 was 2.1%, down by 0.1 percentage point compared with the revised figure of 2.2% in October-December 2011; meanwhile, the underemployment rate stayed unchanged at 0.8%. Total labour force was 345,000 in November 2011-January 2012 and the labour force participation rate held stable as the previous period, at 73.2%. Total employment was 338,000, up by 1,300 from 337,000 in the previous period. Analyzed by industry, employment of the Gaming Sector; Transport, Storage & Communications Sector; and the Construction Sector saw increase. Number of the unemployed totalled 7,400, down by 200 from 7,600 in the previous period, with 12.7% being fresh labour force entrants searching for their first job. In comparison with November 2010-January 2011, the unemployment rate and the underemployment rate decreased by 0.6 and 0.9 percentage point respectively; meanwhile, the labour force participation rate rose by 1.3 percentage points.
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24 Feburary 2012, the University of Macau (UM) held a Doctor honoris causa Lecture entitled "Reminiscences of the Founding of HKUST: An Old Returnee's Story". Keynote speaker Prof. Chia-Wei Woo is a world-renowned physicist, educator, and doctor honoris causa of UM. He shared with the audience the founding of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) as well as his several decades of experiences in education and research. In his speech, UM Rector Wei Zhao praised Prof. Woo for his commitment to advancing science, technology and education in south China, saying that even after Prof. Woo resigned as the president of HKUST in 2001, his effort in this regard continued. Prof. Woo is a member on the International Advisory Committee of UM, sharing his wisdom about development strategies. In recognition of his contributions to education, UM conferred a Degree of Doctor of Social Sciences honoris causa upon him in 2011. Prof. Woo shared with the audience the founding of HKUST and higher education development in Hong Kong, interspersing his speech with witty remarks. He thinks it imperative that higher education be diversified to satisfy the different needs of different students, and to reflect the changes in society and time. In discussing which academic programmes a university should offer, Prof. Woo thinks consideration should be given to three factors: the programme's role in the economic development of a society, the possibility of recruiting the top people in the field, and the availability of funding. Not only is Prof. Woo the founding president of HKUST, he is also a world-famous physicist and educator. For decades, he has tirelessly advanced the development of science and technology and educated the next generation, unwittingly practicing the teaching of an old adage that, "Nothing benefits a person more than education." Prof. Woo grew up in Hong Kong, and after graduating from secondary school, he went to the U.S. to pursue further studies. He obtained his bachelor degree in physics and mathematics from Georgetown College, and his master and PhD degrees in physics from Washington University. In 1983, at the age of forty-five, he became president of San Francisco State University, the first Chinese American to head a major university in the U.S. Since 1964 Prof. Woo has published a hundred and twenty papers and books in various fields of physics, including quantum many-body theory, statistical mechanics, liquid crystals, low temperature physics, and surface physics. Under his supervision, twenty-five doctoral students and postdoctoral staff completed their theses and research projects.
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According to statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, new SME lending approved by Macao banks grew significantly in the second half of 2011. Concurrently, the utilisation of SME credit in proportion to the credit limit approved by banks witnessed a slight decrease. New Lending Approved In the second half of 2011, new SME credit limit approved by Macao banks totalled MOP16.9 billion, up by 55.1% from the first half year or 98.2% from the same period of 2010. The collateralised ratio, which indicates the proportion of credit limit with tangible assets pledged, was 60.7%, up 7.0 percentage points when compared with the last survey period but down by 3.1 percentage points when compared with the same period of 2010. Credit Utilisation As at end-December 2011, the outstanding value of total SME loans grew 9.8% from end-June or 34.9% from a year earlier to MOP33.6 billion. When compared with end-June 2011, SME loans to "restaurants, hotels and similar activities", "transport, warehouse and communications", "non-monetary financial institutions" and "construction and public works" increased at respective rates of 34.8%, 23.6%, 17.0% and 16.7%, whereas those to "information technology" dropped 8.6%. The utilisation rate, defined as the proportion of outstanding credit balance to the credit limit granted, dropped slightly by 0.6 percentage points from six months ago to 59.7%. Delinquent Loans At the end of December 2011, the outstanding balance of delinquent SME loans increased by 19.8% from six months ago to MOP515.2 million. Compared to a year ago, the balance dropped by 2.1%. Consequently, the delinquency ratio, a ratio of delinquent loans outstanding balance to total SME loans outstanding, rose 0.13 percentage points from end-June 2011 but dropped 0.58 percentage points from a year earlier to 1.53%. For enquiry, please contact:
Research and Statistics Department, Monetary Authority of Macao
(Tel：83952532; Fax：28353042)
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Carrying on the fine tradition of love and respect for the elders and care for the weak, the SAR Government will continue to enhance the mechanism and devote more resources to support the disadvantaged, the Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, said today. Accompanied by the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Mr Cheong U, the Chief of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Tam Chon Weng, and officials from social affairs and education, Mr Chui this afternoon visited two social service agencies for the elders and children who needed special care. Mr Chui firstly visited a day centre for the elders where he was briefed on the daily activities the elders performed and the kind of medical treatment they are having. He then was introduced to the facilities in the physical therapy room, occupational therapy room and the multi-function room. Then he proceeded to the agency for the children, where he was introduced to the services and the facilities there. Mr Chui talked with the teachers to further understand the different problems the children faced. After the two visits, the Chief Executive held a meeting with members from the Social Services Committee and the Senior Citizen Affairs Committee, and listened to their views on problems and challenges such as the lack of human resources to provide services and supporting measures that the disadvantaged faced. Members from the Senior Citizen Affairs Committee also expressed their ideas and suggestion on the long term development of the Committee. Mr Chui said that the elderly have made a great contribution to Macao's economic development and they should be respected and looked after. He said the SAR Government will shoulder the responsibility in looking after them and promised to devote more resources via various channels. On the question of human resources, the Chief Executive said that aside from enhancing training courses, the Government will study the feasibility of introducing foreign care givers to look after the elders. Mr Chui thanked the members' comments and suggestions and said the related departments would study them seriously. He said the Government would try to put these opinions in the policy address so as to serve the disadvantaged better.
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At the invitation of the University of Macau (UM), Nobel laureate in economic sciences Prof. Robert A. Mundell today (23 February 2012) gave a seminar at UM on the European Debt Dilemma and Its Impact on East Asia and World Economy. The seminar attracted over a thousand and two hundred people, including journalists, teachers and students from local universities and secondary schools, practitioners from the financial and banking sectors, government officials, and representatives from various organizations. The seminar was organized by UM's Asia-Pacific Academy of Economics and Management, with assistance from UM's Faculty of Business Administration. It is part of a series of UM-organized academic events from January to March this year. During his welcome speech, UM's Vice Rector (Academic Affairs) Prof. Simon Ho shared some background information about Prof. Mundell. Prof. Mundell has published many books and papers on the history of international monetary system and theories of international economics. He played such a pivotal role in the introduction of the Euro that he is considered "the father of the Euro" and "the father of the theory of optimum currency areas". He won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1999 for his analysis of monetary and fiscal policy under different exchange rate regimes and his analysis of optimum currency areas. At the seminar, Prof. Mundell analyzed the global financial landscape, and explained the causes and effects of financial crises from a historical point of view, with a wealth of background data on many countries. He also proposed solutions and envisioned the economic future of China, Europe and the U.S. In his opinion, countries around the world should work together to establish an international monetary system to promote world peace and offer a good framework for world economy. He cited the example of Renminbi, saying that China should consider forming a monetary alliance with Europe and the U.S. in order to maintain a stable foreign exchange rate of Renminbi and alleviate instability in the exchange rates between MOP and HKD on the one hand, and foreign currencies on the other. Many audiences seized the rare opportunity to ask questions during the Q&A session. The seminar was preceded by a special session called "Dialogues between Nobel Laureate in Economic Sciences and Post-secondary Students from Zhuhai and Macao". Prof. Mundell patiently answered questions from the students. Participating students described the opportunity to discuss questions face-to-face with a Nobel laureate as excitingly "rare", saying that Prof. Mundell's insightful views on the development of world economy have expanded their international perspective.
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Consumer Council enhances its work on surveying commodity prices and includes seasonings and dairy products as surveyed items to its specific price survey. The first specific price survey on seasonings revealed great price discrepancies in the 13 items sold in different retail outlets, most seasonings recorded a difference in price of around 20% to 30%. Prices of foods in Macao are affected by peripheral issues and are expected to rise. One of the key tasks of Consumer Council is to better its work on collecting and providing comprehensive information to consumers for making price comparisons and saving daily expenses. Two more product categories have been added to the Council's specific price survey pool to make a total of six categories, the Council will continue to adjust related projects according to requests of consumers and market changes. The two categories added are seasonings and dairy products. The Council's first survey on prices of seasonings dated 20th February recorded prices of 13 items, including soy sauce, salt, and sugar, etc., from 22 retail outlets. Survey results revealed a difference of around 20% to 30% in the selling prices of the same product sold in various outlets, the highest price discrepancy being recorded was over 50% . Consumer Council indicated that selling prices of seasonings usually ranged from a few dollars to around 10 dollars, though prices differed for only MOP2.00 to MOP3.00, the percentage difference was relatively high. For example, prices of 'Tai Yang Hua Brand Table Salt (1lb)' in different retail spots varied for up to MOP1.50, which equaled to a percentage difference of 60%. Price differences and comparisons can be accessed on the 'Specific product price information platform' on the Council's website. The latest specific price survey on seasonings is now available online on the Council's official website (www.consumer.gov.mo). For enquiries, please call 8988 9315.
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