The National Tourism Administration (CNTA) held a press conference in Beijing today (26 August), to announce details of the 8th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Tourism Ministerial Meeting (TMM8) to be held in Macao on 13 September 2014. At the conference, the Director of the Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO), Ms Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, introduced to the attendees the preparatory work for the meeting, most of which has been successfully completed. Ms Senna Fernandes said it is of great significance for Macao to organize this ministerial meeting, as it reflects the full support of the Central People's Government for the Macao SAR. She said she firmly believed that, through this opportunity, the APEC member economies will gain a better understanding of the successful implementation of "one country, two systems" in Macao, and enrich their knowledge of Chinese and Western cultural heritage in Macao. This will help foster future co-operation between the development of Macao and the APEC economies and generate momentum for positioning Macao as a world tourism and leisure centre. Ms Senna Fernandes said as the Macao SAR is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year, this would also be a good opportunity for Macao to promote its image to the world. On the preparatory work, she said the Macao SAR Government has been working hard on planning and preparation, and has attended several co-ordination meetings with the CNTA. Currently, there are satisfactory arrangements for meeting venues, hospitality for delegations, media support and security. The Director General of the Department of Tourism Promotion and International Communications of the CNTA, Mr Li Shihong, announced the program for the TMM8. He said that this ministerial meeting, with the main theme of "Exploration of Asia Pacific Tourism Co-operation and Future Development", will also announce the "Macao Declaration". According to Mr Li, as of 25 August 17 APEC economies including the United States of America, Mexico and Australia; international organizations such as the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), and the APEC International Centre for Sustainable Tourism (AICST); 15 other economies, and representatives from 60 international organizations have registered for the meeting. Established in 1989, APEC is the highest level and most influential regional economic organization in the Asia-Pacific region. It currently has 21 member economies and three official observers. To enhance tourism exchanges and co-operation and facilitate tourism development of the Asia Pacific Region, a biennial tourism ministerial meeting was launched in 2000. This is to be organized by the host country for the year. TMM8 is the first APEC Tourism Ministerial Meeting hosted by China, which has been sending delegations to participate in this event since its inception.