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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that there were 12 institutions of higher education in the 2008/2009 academic year; meanwhile a total of 109 schools offering pre-primary, primary and secondary (including vocational-technical) education, 76 are within the free education system; moreover, there were 9 schools offering special education. At the end of the 2008/2009 academic year, there were 20,917 students attending higher education, up by 11.6% over the previous academic year, with local students accounting for 69.2%. Meanwhile, pre-primary, primary and secondary education had 76,214 students, with those of primary (27,481) and secondary (39,463) decreased by 8.4% and 4.0% respectively, while pre-primary students (9,270) rose by 1.3%. In addition, there were 482 students attending special education, up slightly by 0.4%. Total number of teachers engaging in higher education was 1,812; those teaching in pre-primary, primary and secondary education totalled 4,847 while 108 were in special education. Teacher/student ratio for higher education was 1 to 11.5; the ratio for pre-primary, primary and secondary education was 1 to 15.7 and that for special education was 1 to 4.5. The Education Survey for the 2008/2009 academic year also covered 12 schools providing recurrent education, 137 establishments providing adult education and 152 private tutorial centres. Number of students attending recurrent education increased by 6.3% to 2,880; course enrolment of adult education totalled 129,146, down by 1.0% year-on-year. Meanwhile, a total of 5,067 students were receiving auxiliary tutorial services at 152 private tutorial centres, with 70.8% being primary students and 15.5% being secondary students. As regards the 2009/2010 academic year, a total of 33,007 students enrolled in higher education and 73,782 students in pre-primary, primary and secondary education.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that visitor arrivals in package tours decreased by 7.7% year-on-year to 510,679 in March 2010. Visitors from Mainland China (355,300) and Taiwan, China (25,225) dropped by 18.8% and 5.9% respectively, while those from Japan (27,581) and Hong Kong (21,196) rose by 55.9% and 6.3% respectively. Moreover, visitors from the Republic of Korea (14,173), India (6,530) and Vietnam (5,924) also registered notable increase. In the first quarter of 2010, visitor arrivals in package tours increased by 4.6% year-on-year to 1,433,956. In March 2010, the number of Macao residents travelling outbound in package tours increased by 8.8% year-on-year to 18,494, with Mainland China (77.4% of total), Japan (6.7%) and Hong Kong (4.4%) being the most popular tour itineraries. In the first quarter of 2010, Macao residents travelling in package tours totalled 51,534, up by 8.5% year-on-year. Meanwhile, outbound residents travelling under own arrangements using services of travel agencies increased by 9.0% year-on-year to 34,791; the main destinations were Hong Kong (31.5% of total), Mainland China (29.1%) and Taiwan, China (18.9%). Outbound residents travelling under such arrangements rose by 12.9% year-on-year to 100,737 in the first quarter of 2010. At the end of March 2010, total number of available guest rooms of the hotel sector increased by 1,831 (+10.4%) year-on-year to 19,408 rooms. A total of 641,987 guests checked into hotels and guest-houses in March 2010, up by 7.6% year-on-year, with the majority coming from Mainland China (52.0% of total) and Hong Kong (20.4%). The average occupancy rate of hotels and guest-houses increased by 4.9 percentage points year-on-year to 77.5% and that of hotels reached 78.2%, with 4-star hotels leading at 84.6%. The average length of stay of guests increased by 0.1 night to 1.5 nights. The cumulative number of guests reached 1,885,263 in the first quarter of 2010, up by 15.2% over the same period of 2009. In the first quarter of 2010, visitor-guests of hotels and guest-houses accounted for 60.7% of the total number of tourists, down from 61.9% in the same period of 2009.
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Macau Government Tourist Office Deputy Director Manuel Pires and Head of Research and Planning Department Cheng Wai Tong participated in the 22nd Joint Meeting of the UNWTO Commission for East Asia and the Pacific and the UNWTO Commission for South Asia held in Hanoi, Vietnam. Hundreds of participants from over 20 countries/regions in Asia and the Pacific took part in the 22nd Joint Meeting of the UNWTO Commission for East Asia and the Pacific and the UNWTO Commission for South Asia jointly organized by UNWTO and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Vietnam, held May 10 to 12. Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Vietnam Hoang Tuan Anh and Secretary-General of UNWTO Taleb Rifai delivered welcome speeches at the opening ceremony. Taleb Rifai introduced the recent situation of world tourism, the work and financial status of UNWTO and emphasized the activities held in the Asia Pacific region as well as the restructure of the UNWTO secretariat. He hoped that with the restructure of the secretariat, the connection among member countries and regions would be strengthened while allowing for more prompt and flexible responses to changes in the tourism industry. Besides the general commission discussions, the joint meeting this year added a roundtable discussion and tourism conference. The roundtable discussion offered a platform for participants to share their views on the tourism performance of the Asia-Pacific region in 2009 and prospects for 2010, with a focus on the recovery of countries’ national economies and tourism industries as well as contemporary issues of interest about international tourism in general. Manuel Pires presented the tourism performance of Macau SAR in 2009 and prospects for 2010 at the roundtable discussion, highlighting the "Plan to Support Macau Tourism Industry", a series of measures launched by the Macau SAR Government to stimulate leisure tourism, business tourism and the aviation industry as a way to maintain Macau’s momentum and competitive edge as an international destination. Themed as “Tourism as a Key Driver for Socio-economic Development in Asia and the Pacific”, the tourism conference comprised two sessions namely “Tourism as an Economic Powerhouse and its Contribution to the Local Economy” and “The Positive Social Contribution of Responsible Tourism”. The meeting also arranged a technical tour to the World Heritage, Ha Long Bay for the participants.
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The Institute For Tourism Studies, Macao will host the “Macau Slow Food 2010 – Food Heritage of the Macanese” on 14 May. The event is organized by the Tourism Event Management and Heritage Management Year 2 Students and supported by the IFT Student Union. The objective of the event is to promote the philosophy of Slow Food culture, as well as the food heritage in Macao. Date: 14 May, Friday
Time: 1130
Venue: Amphitheatre, Team Building, IFT More information about the event can be found on the attached leaflet. Institute For Tourism Studies
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Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) organized for the first time a Macau destination presentation in the Middle East to promote the tourism of the city among travel operators and media in the region, aiming to attract more visitors from this part of the world, stimulating the diversification of the source of visitors to Macau. MGTO has been striving to explore opportunities to expand the tourism market from the Middle East, a market with huge potential. Macau is participating for the forth consecutive year at the most important tourism fair in the region, the Arabian Travel Market, held in Dubai from 4 to 7 of May, and this year, for the first time, on the eve of the event, MGTO hosted a Macau destination presentation. During the presentation, MGTO’s Market Division chief Betty Fok introduced to dozens of Middle East travel trade and media, the Macau World Heritage, its leisure tourism products, infrastructures for business tourism and entertainment, among others, presenting Macau tourism situation and helping to expand the market in this part of the world. On its 17th edition, ATM was held the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre. Macau booth at the event was dedicated to the theme “Experience Macau”, and the five senses, “See, Taste, Feel, Hear, Touch”, showcasing the unique difference of Macau. The number of visitors from the Middle East to Macau more than tripled from 2,000 in 2004 to 7,700 in 2009, revealing that Macau is an increasing popular destination among Middle East visitors. On the first quarter of the year, the number of visitors from the Middle East increased by 21.88 percent compared to the same period last year. ATM is the leading travel and tourism exhibition in the Arabic world and the Middle East. According to organizers, the event attracted last year 2,180 exhibitors, 15,000 visitors and 1000 media representatives.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the population of Macao was estimated at 542,400 as at 31 March 2010, similar to 542,200 at end-2009. In the first quarter of 2010, there were 1,191 live births, down by 13.9% quarter-to-quarter. Gender ratio of the newborn was 103.2, with 605 male babies. Number of mortality cases totalled 459 and the major underlying causes of death were Neoplasms and Diseases of the Circulatory System. Meanwhile, 4 cases of fetal mortality were recorded. There were 1,106 cases of Notifiable diseases reported in this quarter, consisting mainly of Influenza (276 cases), Enterovirus Infection (255 cases) and Acute Norovirus gastroenteropathy (143 cases). In addition, 867 cases of marriage registration were recorded, up by 3.1% over the fourth quarter of 2009. In the first quarter of 2010, there were 758 Chinese immigrants moving to Macao with One-way Exit Permit, a decrease of 22 quarter-to-quarter; meanwhile, 250 illegal immigrants were repatriated. Moreover, a total of 1,948 individuals were authorized to reside in Macao, down by 1,018 quarter-to-quarter. Total number of non-resident workers stood at 72,843 at the end of the first quarter, down by 2,062 quarter-to-quarter.
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The Offshore Group of Insurance Supervisors will hold its 17th Annual Working Meeting in Macau from the 10th to the 13th of May 2010 under the auspices of the Monetary Authority of Macau (AMCM). There will be 15 overseas delegates from offshore insurance regulatory authorities attending this meeting from the following jurisdictions: Bahamas; Bermuda; British Virgin Islands; Cayman Islands: Curacao; Gibraltar; Guernsey; Isle of Man; Jersey and Samoa. According to the agenda of the meeting, the main focus on the first day will be on discussions relating to “Achieving Solvency II Equivalence”. On the second day, reports from various jurisdictions will be reviewed, including the reports from the Education Committee and from the Committee set up to deal with various projects of the OGIS. On the final day, the Group will debate on the recent developments of the IAIS (International Association of Insurance Supervisors), including other international issues in the area of insurance. The meeting will take place at the World Trade Center, “Macau Room” – 17th Floor, on the 10th, 11th and 12th of May starting at 09:00 a.m. The Opening Ceremony will be presided by the Chairman of the AMCM, Mr. Anselmo Teng.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that a total of 694 new companies were incorporated in the first quarter of 2010, up by 26.9% year-on-year; the total value of registered capital surged by 99.2% to MOP88 million. Among these new companies, 251 were operating in Wholesale and Retail, with the registered capital amounting to MOP25 million; meanwhile, 133 were operating in Business Services and 97 in Construction. Furthermore, 444 new companies (64.0% of total) were incorporated with registered capital under MOP50,000 and the value of capital (MOP12 million) made up merely 13.2% of the total. Meanwhile, there were 13 new companies incorporated with registered capital of MOP1,000,000 or over, and the value of capital (MOP47 million) accounted for 53.6% of the total. In addition, more than 80% of the new incorporations were limited companies. Capital of the new companies came mainly from Macao (MOP66 million), Mainland China (MOP7 million) and Hong Kong (MOP4 million). Capital from Guangdong Province (MOP4 million) took the lead among the Pan-Pearl River Delta provinces. Analyzed by place of residence of the shareholders, 457 new companies were established solely by Macao shareholders, 84 were joint ventures between shareholders from Macao and other countries or regions. In the first quarter of 2010, number of companies in dissolution totalled 128 and the value of registered capital amounted to MOP21 million, of which the registered capital of 39 Wholesale and Retail companies in dissolution accounted for 31.1%.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, today continued with his series of visit to nine neighhouring cities with a tour to Guangzhou and Zhongshan. Mr Chui and his delegation of Government officials arrived in Guangzhou in the morning and met the Secretary of Guangzhou Municipal Committee of the CPC, Mr Zhang Guangning, and the Mayor of Guangzhou, Mr Wan Qingliang. Mr Zhang emphasised the importance of the relationship between Macao and Guangdong and urged for more bilateral co-operation. Mr Chui responded that Guangzhou had all along been supporting Macao in different areas and he hoped that the city could facilitate Macao in its drive to diversify its economy. After the meeting, Mr Chui visited the Guangzhou Higher Education Mega Center and Guangzhou South Railway Station at the accompany of Mr Wan. In the afternoon, the delegation left for Zhongshan where members visited a textile factory set up by a Macao businessman and a business district in the city, before meeting with the Secretary of Zhongshan Municipal Committee of the CPC, Mr Chen Genkai. Mr Chen said that the Government and business sector of Macao had made important contributions to the development of Macao and he hoped that Macao would continue to support and help develop Zhongshan. In response, Mr Chui said that Macao and Zhongshan may further co-operate in services industry and finance industry. The delegation included the Chief-of-Office of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Tam Chon Weng, the Secretary-General of Executive Council, Ms O Lam, the Director of Government Information Bureau, Mr Chan Chi Ping, Advisor of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Fung Sio Weng and Mr Kou Chin Hung, and Personal Assistant to the Chief Executive, Ms Tam Ka Wa.
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The Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao S.A.R. Government will organize an Academic Research Lecture in the Cultural Affairs Bureau Auditorium (Edifício do Instituto Cultural, Tap Seac Square, Macao) at 6:30pm on Friday 14 May. Chan Wei Ming, professor at the College of History of Jinan University, Guangzhou, China, will give a lecture on “Issues Relating to the Standard of Living and Consumption in Macao during the Qing Dynasty”. The lecture will discuss the development of consumption pattern of Macao people in the Qing Dynasty and the implications of economic and cultural evolution for such development. It will make a historical interpretation of the means of livelihood, the level, fashion, type, structure and characteristics of the consumption of Macao people back in the Qing Dynasty. Based on his in-depth analysis, the speaker will share his social consumption research approaches and his views on aspects related to consumption and culture. Chen Wei Ming, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts in Jinan University, Guangzhou, China, a professor at the university's College of History and a Ph.D. supervisor at the university, received his Ph.D. in studies of history of Ming and Qing Dynasties from the University of Hong Kong's School of Chinese in 1990 and M.A. in studies of ancient Chinese history from the University of Jinan University's College of History. He has successfully led projects in the Mainland, Macao and Hong Kong, including research projects for National Social Science Foundation of China, planning projects for the Ministry of Education, planning projects for Guangdong Province, projects for National Commission for Classics Editing & Research by Institutions of Higher Learning and science research projects for Macao and Hong Kong institutions. He is the author of over ten specialized teaching materials and over 140 academic research papers in the Mainland, Macao, Hong Kong and Taiwan. In 2007, he was awarded a research grant by the Cultural Affairs Bureau to study the standard of living and consumption of Macao during the Qing Dynasty.
The lecture will be given in Mandarin with Cantonese, Portuguese and English simultaneous interpretation.
Entrance is free. For further details, please contact Ms. Chu of the Macao Historical Archives of the Cultural Affairs Bureau at 85986537.
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