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The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, today said the Government is to implement a series of livelihood-related policies and measures – including optimising Macao’s social security system and social welfare measures – in order to continue its efforts in advancing the quality of life for Macao people. Mr Chui disclosed the initiatives in the Policy Address for the Fiscal Year 2017– entitled “Development Plan in Progress for Building a Perfect Home”, delivered at the Legislative Assembly this afternoon. This year’s Policy Address covered four chapters: “Implementation of livelihood-related policies and measures”; “Consolidation of the foundation for economic development”; “Building a happy and perfect home”; and “Enhancement of public services’ efficiency”. Enhancing the respective livelihoods of Macao people is a top priority of the Government, said Mr Chui. The Government is to continue to push forward measures in the short-, medium-, and long-term that help consolidate the three-layer social security system, namely: for the social security fund; social assistance; and social welfare. In support of its policy aims, the Government is maintaining the values of public subsidies on a number of relief measures: the minimum subsistence index value would be kept at 4,050 patacas; the Government-disbursed pension for the elderly to 3,450 patacas per month; and the old age person’s allowance to 8,000 patacas per year. Relief measures such as the special living allowance; special subsidy to disadvantaged families; the short-term food assistance programme; the disability gratuity; and the health voucher programme, would be continued in the coming year. For eligible students, the Government would maintain allowances for meals and textbooks. The Continuing Education Programme, which offers study allowances for Macao residents enrolled in a tertiary education programme or training programme, will continue supporting the development of local talent. Tuition fee subsidies for Macao students receiving tuition in Guangdong Province would be continued, and would be expanded to cover two more prefectures: Shenzhen and Dongguan. The Government would continue to subsidise low-income full-time employees with up to 5,000 patacas per month, while providing assistance such as the Positive Life Programme and the Community Employment Assistance Scheme. For people with physical or mental challenges, the Government would provide a yearly subsidy of up to 8,000 patacas for people with ordinary conditions and up to 16,000 patacas for those suffering from certain special illnesses. To encourage further employment opportunities for people with life challenges, for every person with disabilities that is hired by an employer, the Government will offer tax relief to that employer amounting to up to 5,000 patacas on profit tax. The Government would continue the Wealth Partaking Scheme, which offers 9,000 patacas annually to each permanent resident and 5,400 patacas for each non-permanent resident. The Government would inject 10,000 patacas of seed capital into the Central Provident Fund savings account of every eligible resident. In 2017 the Government would inject an additional 7,000 patacas from the fiscal surplus into those eligible accounts, Mr Chui added. Relief measures would cost the Government 12.352 billion patacas, Mr Chui stated. For employed residents, the first 30 percent of annual income from employment will continue to be tax free, up to a ceiling of 144,000 patacas. There would be also a 60-percent rebate in the fiscal year 2017 on the personal income tax paid by each taxpaying Macao resident. That will be capped at 12,000 patacas, with the money returned in 2018, Mr Chui said. For residents that are first-time homebuyers, the Government would waive real estate stamp duty for the first 3 million patacas of a home’s value. For business owners, the Government would introduce a number of tax-waiver measures, in order to support growth of local small- and medium-sized enterprises. Looking to the year ahead, the Government would step up efforts to: build a comprehensive system for talent cultivation; introduce more family-friendly measures; and formulate measures with the aim of building a healthy society, said Mr Chui. The Government would provide more than 7,000 subsidised places for childcare services for two-year-olds; and would establish the first integrated elderly care facility in the Islands District. Regarding talent cultivation, the Government would develop a training programme for Portuguese-speaking professionals and commence research on the demand for talented professionals in the financial industry and the construction industry. The Chief Executive also gave details of his vision regarding six aspects of Government work in the coming year that relate to building Macao as a “happy and perfect home” for all residents. They are: 1) an urban development strategy, with the aim of working toward formulation of an overall urban development plan by 2019; 2) a secure housing supply, including optimisation of the procedures regarding application for, and allocation of, public housing; the construction of 12,600 public housing units as part of short- to medium-term planning; and continuation of the existing planning regarding a public housing project in Avenida Wai Long, in Taipa; 3) optimising the transportation system, including commencing operation of four public car parks providing more than 3,600 parking spaces; and gradually commencing the operation of one hundred special taxis; 4) constructing a smart city, including commencing a study of the development strategy and overall planning for making government data publicly accessible; and launching a visitor statistics databank; 5) urban management; completing construction of the new civil protection centre and commencing its 24-hours-per-day operation; and completing construction of the new wholesale market in Macao; and 6) conservation of the natural environment, including enforcing the new exhaust emission standard for vehicles currently on the road; and the commencement of efforts to draft laws and regulations related to waste reduction. The Full Policy Address for the Fiscal Year 2017 and pamphlets in Chinese and Portuguese summarising it will be available at the following locations: the Government Head Office Auxiliary Bureau; the Government Information Bureau; the Government Printing Bureau; the Public Information Centre; the headquarters of the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau; the Macao Central Library; and at the offices of Macao Post. The materials are also available for download on the respective websites of these public bodies.

Video:The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, delivers 2017 Policy Address at the Legislative Assembly

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Organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) and co-organised by the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau (IACM), the Tap Siac Craft Market will be held from 17 to 20 November (Thursday to Sunday) at the Tap Siac Square. The public is welcome to participate, enjoy the local and foreign creative works and buy their favourite cultural and creative products. The Tap Siac Craft Market will be held from 5pm to 10pm on Thursday and Friday and from 3pm to 10pm on Saturday and Sunday, featuring a total of 240 booths from Mainland China, Macao, Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as Malaysia, Singapore and Korea. The Craft Market features various distinctive and creative products, including accessories, fashion design, clothing, drawings, paintings, home furnishings, creative potted plants, natural handmade products, eco-friendly products, as well as creative food and beverages. Furthermore, more than 20 workshops, conducted by creation professionals from different regions, will be held for the public to experience the fun of creativity. The Craft Market features a “Craft Market Concert” presenting local and foreign original music. All are welcome to join . Inaugurated in 2008, the Tap Siac Craft Market is Macao’s first large-scale integrated platform for the display and sale of cultural and creative products, also featuring original music performances. Every year the event attracts participants from Macao and other regions, and it has been highly appreciated by both residents and tourists since its inception. For more information about the Craft Market, please visit the Cultural Affairs Bureau website (www.icm.gov.mo), the Macao Cultural and Creative Industries Website (www.macaucci.com) or the “Tap Siac Craft Market” page on Facebook (www.facebook.com/MacaoCraftMarket).
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For the implementation of Section 2b), Article 10, Law 4/95/M of 12 June, Consumer Council on 15 November collects prices of fresh pork from wet markets and supermarkets for consumers’ reference. The mentioned data collected during 9 November to 15 November are used for comparing the average selling price of the same products from Zhuhai and Hong Kong. The relevant data has been uploaded to the Council’s website for consumers’ reference. fThe specific price surveys on fresh pork and vegetables are now available on the Council’s website (www.consumer.gov.mo), iPhone & Android ‘Supermarket Price Information Platform’ app, and the Council’s WeChat Account page. The relevant surveys include the average selling prices of local fresh pork and vegetables, and comparison on the respective the average selling prices rom Zhuhai, HK, and Macao. For enquiry, please call 8988 9315.
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Organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), the “The World in Colour and Ink – Collection of Feelings to Huangshan and Jingdezhen work exhibition” will be inaugurated next Tuesday, 22 November, at 6pm, at the Mount Fortress Corridor, featuring artworks by 11 Macao artists who travelled to Huangshan in Anhui Province and Jingdezhen in Jiangxi Province to develop live works. Admission is free and all are welcome. Through creativity, the artists express their most genuine emotions and convey what they have seen and heard. Their works depict the spectacular landscapes of Huangshan and the unique appearance of Jingdezhen. Macao artists travelled to Huangshan and Jingdezhen to participate in drawing, painting and calligraphy exchange activities. This exhibition features a total of 33 pieces (sets) of Chinese painting, western painting and Chinese calligraphy, featuring three pieces of artworks from each artist. In addition, the artists’ experimental paintings on porcelain created during the trip to Huangshan and Jingdezhen, are also showcased in this exhibition for the first time. This exhibition is an extension of the Collective Exhibition of Macao Artists, which promotes local artists participation in an exchange programme of exhibitions in different provinces of Mainland China, aiming to facilitate artistic exchange between the art circles of Macao and other regions as well as to broaden Macao artists’ horizons. “The World in Colour and Ink – Collection of Feelings to Huangshan and Jingdezhen work exhibition” will be held from 23 to 30 November 2016, at the Mount Fortress Corridor, located at Caminho dos Artilheiros, Beco dos Artilheiros, Macau, and is open daily from 7am to 7pm. Admission is free. For enquiries about the exhibition, please call IC through tel. no. 8988 4000 during office hours.
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The applications for the “2016 Support Programme for the Production of Feature Films”, organized by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), are now open until 30 December 2016. Local filmmakers and producers are welcome to apply. Successful applicants will each receive a financial support of up to 1.5 million patacas to produce a feature film. The “2016 Support Programme for the Production of Feature Films” aims to continuously promote the development of the Macao film industry, cultivate local filmmaking talents, enhance the professional production capacity of the local film industry, and encourage filmmakers to get involved in feature film productions, thus spawning more local cinematic works with full creativity. Applicants must hold a valid Macao Resident Identity Card and must be aged 18 or above, and must have directed or produced at least one 80-minute feature film or two short films (fiction) with over 20 minutes each, which must have been screened in public. The adjudication will include two phases. In the Initial Review, after verification and acceptance of all submitted documentation, the adjudicating panel will select a maximum of ten projects to enter the next phase, based on five criteria including contents and creativity of the script, applicant and film crew’s implementing capacity, feasibility of film production project, degree of perfection of whole project planning and overall budget rationale. In the Second Review, the adjudicating panel will review and analyse the application documents based on three criteria including applicant and film crew’s implementing capacity, the completeness of the script and the feasibility of promotion and marketing plan of the film, followed by a final interview with the applicants and their production team members, as well as the review of applicants’ presentation before the final eligible applicants are selected. A maximum of four beneficiaries will be selected and each beneficiaries will receive a financial support up to 70% of the total estimated costs of the approved project (up to a maximum of MOP 1,500,000), to be used for the production, promotion and marketing of the feature film. The Programme’s information, regulations and application forms can be downloaded at the Cultural Affairs Bureau website (www.icm.gov.mo/cn/CCI-Subsidy) and at the Macao Cultural and Creative Industries Website (www.macaucci.com). Applicants should submit all required documents to the Division for Planning and Developing Cultural and Creative Industries of the Cultural Affairs Bureau located at No. 567, Av. da Praia Grande, Edif. BNU, 12th floor A-D, Macao, in the designated period of time. For enquiries, please contact Mr. Leong or Mr. Chong, staff members of IC, through tel. no. (853) 2892 4040, during office hours.
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The Monetary Authority of Macao announced today that the preliminary estimate of Macao SAR’s foreign exchange reserves amounted to MOP154.4 billion (USD19.33 billion) at the end of October 2016. The reserves decreased by 0.3% from the revised value of MOP154.9 billion (USD19.39 billion) for the previous month. Macao SAR’s foreign exchange reserves at end-October 2016 represented 12 times the currency in circulation or 98.3% of Pataca M2 at end-September 2016. The trade-weighted effective exchange rate index for the pataca rose 1.15 points month-to-month and 1.52 points year-on-year to 106.91 in October 2016, implying that overall speaking, the exchange rate of the pataca advanced against the currencies of Macao’s major trading partners.
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The Macao Cultural Centre, under the auspices of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, presents its Children’s Choir Annual Concert set to be staged on December 18 at the Small Auditorium. This year’s performance includes a wide range of internationally known tunes and will feature choreographic moves to dramatize some of the songs. This time, grownups and kids will also have the chance to enjoy interpretations performed a cappella by some of the little choristers. The CCM Children’s Choir provides quality music education to children aged 8 to 16. Through weekly choral practices, music appreciation and creative activities, choristers develop their interests and talents in music, as well as their interpersonal skills and sensitivity to appreciate art. Ticket distribution for this free admission performance starts from November 15 at CCM’s box Office and Macao Ticketing Network outlets. Each person may collect two tickets, available on a first-come first-served basis. For further inquiries, please visit www.ccm.gov.mo or call (853) 2870 0699.
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The 1st International Film Festival & Awards‧Macao (IFFAM) will be staged from 8th to 13th December. The Organizing Committee held a press conference today (14 November) to share the latest progress of event preparation. Director of Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) and President of the IFFAM Organizing Committee, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, President of Macau Films & Television Productions and Culture Association (MFTPA) and Executive Vice President of the IFFAM Organizing Committee, Alvin Chau, famous Korean actor and IFFAM Talent Ambassador, Jang Keun-Suk, other personages as well as members of the press coming from Hong Kong, Macao, Mainland China and around the world were present in the press conference. The number of attendees aggregates over a hundred. During the press conference, President of the IFFAM Organizing Committee Senna Fernandes presented the event program in detail, and awards were handed to the judges and winner of IFFAM – “Macao Audience Choice Award” Trophy Design Competition. The press conference also introduced members of the jury, comprising film directors from Hong Kong and Macao, for the Chinese Language Short Content Competition, which will be held to encourage participation among the local cultural and creative sector and inspire young local talents to create their works. In response to Mr. Marco Müller’s resignation from his post of Festival Director of IFFAM earlier, President of the IFFAM Organizing Committee Senna Fernandes will take up the post of Acting Festival Director and all the work and responsibilities concerned together with the Secretariat. Rich and fascinating program Spanning six consecutive days, the IFFAM program encompasses an opening ceremony, an array of film premieres and red-carpet presentations, Industry Hub, media exchange sessions after numerous film screenings, Masterclass, closing ceremony and award ceremony, etc. The 1st International Film Festival & Awards‧Macao will commence with an opening ceremony at Macao Cultural Centre on the night of 8th December. Many internationally-acclaimed film stars and personages will appear on the red carpet. A French movie titled “Polina, danser sa vie” will unveil the opening night. The closing ceremony will also be held at Macao Cultural Centre, on the night of 13th December, when winners of the Competition Section in IFFAM will be announced followed by a grand award ceremony. 50 international films come into spotlight The 1st IFFAM will screen a total of 50 films from over 20 countries and regions across the globe. For most of the films, this will be their world or Asian premiere. As one of the highlights in IFFAM, the Competition Section will pit 11 feature films against each other for a total of 9 awards, including the Best Film, Jury Prize, the Best Director, the Best Actor Award, the Best Actress Award, the Award for Best New Young Actor or Actress, the Best Screenplay, Award for Best Technical Contribution and Macao Audience Choice Award. The 11 films will debut at Macao Cultural Centre or Macau Tower. In addition, a range of film screenings including Gala, “Hidden Dragons”, Best of Fest, Special Presentation and “Crossfire” will feature recommended films for appreciation and special film genres. Among them, Gala will present seven of the most important films of the year including “Polina, danser sa vie”, which has been chosen to kick-off the Festival. In recent years, more local directors have directed local films in Macao which have gained wider recognition over time. Directed by local director Emily Chan and starring Sean Pang, the movie “Yesterday Once More” will be lined up alongside other films in the category of “Hidden Dragons” (Genre of Asian films in original and distinctive style). Another movie “Sisterhood”, starring Gigi Leung and jointly directed by local director Tracy Choi and a Hong Kong director, will run in the Competition Section. Industry Hub functions as a platform The three-day Industry Hub will take place at Macao Science Center from 9th to 11th December. Film industry professionals from worldwide have been invited to participate in the event, so as to enhance interchanges and create new business opportunities in the industry. The Industry Panel and Crouching Tigers Project Lab will also be rolled out along with other activities. Demonstrating the advantage to host mega events in Macao, the activities and screenings of IFFAM will take place at various venues across Macao Peninsula and Taipa this year, including Macao Cultural Centre, Macao Science Center, Galaxy Macau, Macau Tower Convention and Entertainment Centre, Wynn Macau and The Venetian Macao, etc. Promotional strategies To gear up for the 1st IFFAM, the Organizing Committee visited various film festivals in different countries and regions this year to promote the upcoming event and learn from its counterparts’ experience, including Hong Kong International Film & TV Market (FILMART), Cannes Film Festival, Shanghai International Film Festival, Busan International Film Festival, London Film Festival and Tokyo International Film Festival, etc. The Organizing Committee also promotes the event in partnership with TV stations, newspaper, magazines, ferry operators, bus companies and banks, etc. As for online promotion, a website and theme pages on social networks have been set up for the event to give wider publicity to IFFAM. A mobile interactive game has also been launched to capture the attention of mobile users for their participation. Beyond the city, the Organizing Committee has specially invited over 100 representatives of film media from across the region and the globe to cover the event in depth especially through feature articles about IFFAM’s feature films, thus widening media coverage of the event. As a result, it will produce dual effects of wide publicity and in-depth coverage directed towards the film industry, which will raise Macao’s profile to a new level. Selling Film tickets Apart from the opening and closing film, all the feature films will be shown to the public at Macao Cultural Centre, Macau Tower Convention and Entertainment Centre, The Venetian Macao and Galaxy Macau. Residents and visitors can buy the film tickets at the outlets or website of Kong Seng Ticketing Service starting from 21 November. For more details and latest news of the 1st IFFAM, please visit http://iffamacao.com/en/. In addition, for more relevant photos and information about the IFFAM, please browse: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ky2x0e6kngql93f/AABekRIC3WLZZh6t0dUKn9Qza?dl=0
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The 83rd UFI Global Congress, organised by UFI - The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, was held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai between 9 and 12 November inclusive. This was the second time the Congress had been held in Mainland China: the first time was in 2006, when the event took place in Beijing. Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) – as the official Macao SAR Government body responsible for promoting the development of the city’s meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) industry – attended the Congress. Representatives from IPIM took part in the main activities of the Congress, and set up a booth at the event to promote Macao’s unique advantages as a MICE destination. The theme for the 83rd UFI Global Congress was “Ripples – The Exhibition Industry in Transformation”. Participants discussed the challenges currently faced by the MICE industry, including changes brought by the digital age, as well as uncertainty connected to political instability and transformations in the global economy. UFI’s annual report on the development of the exhibition industry was delivered during the Congress, and the UFI annual award presentation ceremony also took place there. UFI is a leading international association in the exhibitions and conventions field. Its Congress is one of the most influential annual events in the industry. The 2016 edition attracted approximately 590 participants from more than 40 countries and regions, including industry leaders, executives, young professionals and senior experts. During the Congress, UFI signed an official cooperation agreement with the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government for the establishment of a representative office in Shanghai. The office’s intended role is to help stimulate the development of the MICE industry in Mainland China. IPIM representatives attended the opening ceremony and several high-profile activities at the Congress. IPIM also set up a 6-square-metre booth in the display area of the Congress to promote the features of Macao’s MICE industry and IPIM’s “One-stop Service” for MICE Bidding and Support in Macao. During the Congress, IPIM’s President, Mr. Jackson Chang, along with the Managing Director of UFI, Mr. Kai Hattendorf, and Professor Dr. Jörg Beier from the Ravensburg University of Cooperative Education in Germany, presented certificates to participants in the internationally accredited 2016 UFI Exhibition Management Degree (UFI-EMD), a course for advanced training in exhibition management, which took place in Macao. During the Congress, Mr. Chang had discussions with industry leaders and executives from more than 40 countries and regions. He took the opportunity to promote the 13th China Expo Forum for International Cooperation (CEFCO 2017), to be held in Macao in January. During these exchanges, Mr. Chang also discussed the development of Macao’s MICE industry and presented the latest updates on it. In January this year, at CEFCO 2016, the organising committee of the event announced Macao had been chosen to host CEFCO 2017, the first time it will be staged outside Mainland China.
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Organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), the exhibition “Traces and Vision – Longzhou ‘Shehuo’ Folk Performances, Photography by Wu Xiaopeng” will be inaugurated this Friday, 18 November, at 6pm at the IACM Temporary Exhibitions Gallery, featuring a total of 60 works by the famous Chinese photographer Wu Xiaopeng. The show displays the folk customs of Longzhou ‘Shehuo’ in Shaanxi Province. Admission is free and all are welcome. Wu Xiaopeng is currently a member of the China Photographers Association, Guangdong Province Photographers Association, of the executive committee of Photographers Association of Zhuhai, and vice-chairman of the HSZM Photographic Alliance. As a former consultant to the Photography Salon Society of Macao, he was a member of the jury of the 16th to the 19th Macao International Salon of Photography. Mr. Wu has received many national and international awards for his works. In 2015, he was hailed as one of the Top 10 Photographers in Guangdong Province. Wu Xiaopeng visited dozens of villages across Longzhou in Shaanxi Province in recent years to capture images of the quaint Shehuo activities. This profound historical and cultural folk custom, of which Shaanxi Province is one of the representatives, was inscribed in the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2006. Rather than pursuing the visual aesthetics of the images, Mr. Wu showcases his endeavour to capture the villagers’ spiritual demeanour and present the customs of indigenous communities. The exhibition “Traces and Vision – Longzhou ‘Shehuo’ Folk Performances, Photography by Wu Xiaopeng” will be held from 19 November 2016 to 8 January 2017, at the IACM Temporary Exhibitions Gallery located at No. 163, Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro, and is open daily from 9am to 9pm, including public holidays. Admission is free. For enquiries about the exhibition, please call IC through tel. no. 8988 4000, during office hours.
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