News

A housing affairs committee which core function is to collect and analyse public opinion on housing has been set up, it was gazetted today. The committee, chaired by the Secretary for Transport and Public Works, comprise members related to housing, such as representatives from the Housing Institute, Office for Infrastructure Department, Lands, Public Works and Transport Bureau, Social Welfare Institute and not more than 14 prominent members of the public. The committee will exist for three years but its term could be renewed. It will hold no less than two meetings every year. The committee will responsible to advise the government on its housing policy.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, is to attend the opeing ceremony of World Expo 2010 in Shanghai, where he will also officiate the inauguration of the Macao Pavilion on 1 May. From Shanghai stay, Mr Chui will lead a high level official delegation to Jiangsu province where he will meet their counterparts to discuss trade co-operations and visit several economic developing zones and historical tourism attractions. Mr Chui is scheduled to depart tomorrow and return on May 3. During his absence, the Secretary for Administration and Justice, Ms Florinda Chan will be the acting chief executive.
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Communications Museum has endeavored to create more opportunities for students to explore and experience the fun of learning science. For the International Museum Day and summer activities of this year, the Museum has arranged a series of activities to encourage students to participate and experience the fun of communications. Registration of all activities are based on a first-come-first-served basis. Seats are limited and no additional classes will be opened. Details, charges and application form can be found at http://macao.communications.museum. A) SCIENCE SEMINAR 2010: A series of seminars about the relations of science and, technology with our daily life are organized by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers of Macao and the Communications Museum. INTERNATIONAL MUSEUM DAY, WORLD TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION SOCIETY DAY: Communications Museum is going to participate in “The Museum Fair of Macao, Hong Kong and Guangdong Province 2010” with the theme of “Museums for Social Harmony” at the Tap Seac Square on May 9. Macao Post will issue a commemorative envelope for free distribution to the public and provide commemorative cancellation service for stamp collectors at the Temporary Postal Counter from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. During the event, visitors can play the interactive games “Smart postman – land, sea, air” and “How to put the stamp chop?” at the booth of Communications Museum. There will also be live demonstrations of the Van de Graaff Generator and its mini version so that visitors can experience the effects of static electricity. Visitors will not only learn more about postal / philatelic service from the games, but they may also win souvenirs and free admission coupons of the Museum. To celebrate the “World Telecommunications and Information Society Day” and “International Museum Day”, visitors can enjoy free entrance at the Communications Museum on May 15, 16 & 18 (Saturday, Sunday & Tuesday). C) INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN’S DAY: “Caring for children with attention for having a healthy growth” is the theme of the International Children’s Day that will be held on June 5 (Saturday) at Macao Forum. There will be interactive games and live demonstrations at the booth of Communications Museum. Visitors can win commemorative envelopes and free admission coupons of the Museum. D) 2010 SUMMER ACTIVITIES–DSEJ: Communications Museum continues to participate in the summer activities organized by the Education and Youth Affairs Bureau. All courses will be held at the E-lab of the Museum. Applicants may register according to the schedules and locations announced by the Education and Youth Affairs Bureau. INTERACTIVE WORKSHOPS: The “brains-on, hands-on” summer workshops are organized by Communications Museum and they will be held at the multifunction room of the Museum. SUMMER SCIENCE CAMP: Science camps will be organized by Communications Museum with the aim of broadening the vision of children and teenagers and increasing their interests in science through interactive activities and outbound tours. ( * Please find the attached file.) Informação Tel: 853- 2871 8063 / 2871 8570 Fax: 853- 2871 8018 Email: info@macao.communications.museum Web: http://macao.communications.museum
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To celebrate the International Museum Day, Macao 2010, Macao Post announces that a Temporary Post Counter will be set up at Tap Seac Plaza from 14:00 to 18:00 on 9th May 2010 to provide the commemorative postmark cancellation service for the “International Museum Day, Macao 2010”. A commemorative envelope will be distributed to public, and various philatelic products will also be available for sale during the above activity. Welcome to visit and collect Macao Stamps.
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Macao Post will participate the “London 2010 International Stamp Exhibition”, located at London, England, during 8th to 15th May 2010. To commemorate this Exhibition, Macao Post issues the commemorative envelopes and provides the commemorative postmark cancellation service on site of the exhibition. Be convenience to the philatelist, the commemorative envelope with stamp priced at MOP4.00 will also be available for sale at the Philately Shop of Macao Post Headquarters starting from 8th May. You may send your registered mail of this commemorative envelope at the following locations *: Philately Shop at Macao Post Headquarters: 8th May 9:00 – 17:30 Post Offices: 8th to 15th May Office Hours to Public * No commemorative postmark cancellation service will be provided in Macao.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the average daily wage of construction workers was MOP529 in the first quarter of 2010, same as that in the previous quarter. The average daily wage of skilled & semi-skilled workers stayed unchanged at MOP566, of which scaffolders (MOP679), welders (MOP649), plant operators (MOP638) and concreters and drain layers (MOP629) were earning higher average wages; meanwhile, the average daily wage of unskilled workers (MOP313) registered a decrease of 12.3%. After discounting the effect of inflation, the wage index of construction workers for the first quarter of 2010 was 94.7 in real terms, down by 1.9% over the previous quarter. As regards construction materials, the average price of spiral and round reinforcing steel bars decreased slightly by 0.6% quarter-to-quarter to MOP4,226 per tonne, and that of Portland cement fell by 2.5% to MOP625 per tonne; however, the average price of sand registered an increase of 6.7% to MOP80 per cubic metre. In the first quarter of 2010, the price index of construction materials for residential buildings rose by 4.5% quarter-to-quarter to 132.4; in particular, the price indices of electric wires and aluminium increased by 14.2% and 8.6% respectively, while the price indices of steel and concrete pipe piles went down by 0.6% and 0.7%. Compared with the same quarter of 2009, the price index of construction materials for residential buildings registered an increase of 4.1%.
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The 21st Macao Arts Festival runs from the 1st to the 29th of May. To enable audiences to get the most from the performances, and to enhance the interactions between artists and the public, the Macao Cultural Affairs Bureau is proud to present a series of free discussion sessions and lectures, to take place from the 8th to the 25th of May. These events provide audience members with the opportunity to talk to artists, while allowing the artists to share the experiences they had when designing and rehearsing their work. On the discussion panel at the pre-performance discussion session for the Macao Chinese Orchestra concert will be the Orchestra's Principal Conductor, Pang Ka Pang, along with the nationally renowned composers Li Binyang, Kuan Nai Chung and Liu Wenjin, whose music is featured on the concert programme. Li Binyang is the composer of the 29th Beijing Olympic Games opening ceremony theme song. Kuan Nai Chung has served as conductor and composer in residence with the Oriental Song-and-Dance Ensemble, composer in residence with the Chinese Artistic Orchestra and conductor of the Beijing Arts Orchestra and China Song-and-Dance Ensemble. Liu Wenjin was honoured as an Outstanding Artist by the China Ministry of Culture. The leading actor in the Cantonese opera The Red Silk Romance, Peng Chiquan, will give a lecture on “Cantonese Opera Musical Analysis”. In addition, there will be a workshop held for the drama Stories of the Rose Alley, for which the director, Cheang Kai Sang, and the actors have been invited to share their thoughts on the topic “The Fading of a Historical City – the creative process behind Stories of the Rose Alley”. Director Lawrence Lei and the actors from the drama In a Grove will hold a workshop titled “In a Grove: a pre-performance script reading” before the play begins. Moreover, a series of discussions on the performances La Boîte (The Box), In a Grove and Yummy, It’s Good! will take place following each of these shows.
Audience members interested in attending any of these events are welcome to call 8399 6699 for registration. Admission is granted on a first come, first served basis, so seize the chance! For any enquires and for further information, please visit www.icm.gov.mo/fam or dial 8399 6699.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, today met with the Secretary of the Guangdong CPC Provincial Committee, Mr Wang Yang, and the Guangdong Governor Huang Huahua, to discuss ways to strengthen bilateral co-operation. This is the first time Mr Chui met with the Guangdong leaders in his official capacity after he assumed the position of Chief Executive of the Macau SAR last December. The meeting took place in Guangzhou where Mr Chui expressed his appreciation towards Guangdong for supporting Macao permanently. He said he agreed with the Guangdong leaders that the two places should joint hands to speed up the implementation of the Reform and Development of the Pearl River Delta Plan (2008-2020) and the Hengqin Overall Development Plan for the benefit of the nation and the people. Mr Wang Yang said that the two plans, approved by the State Council had accentuated the development and function of Hengqin Island. The State Council has upgraded Guangdong-Macao co-operation as one of the national development strategies. Both parties also exchanged views on stepping up co-operation at all levels. After the meeting, Mr Chui and the Macao delegation visited Zhuhai on the first nine cities in the Pearl River Delta that Mr Chui would visit. Accompanied by the Major of Zhuhai, Mr Zhong Shijian, the Chief Executive was briefed on the projects of the Hengqin Central Business District and the Chimelong International Ocean Resort. Afterwards, the Zhuhai Municipal Party Secretary, Mr Gan Lin, introduced Mr Chui to the progress of the Reform and Development of the Pearl River Delta Plan (2008-2020) after it has been implemented for more than a year. During the meeting, they discussed co-operation in tourism under the Plan. Mr Chui said that a taskforce has been set up to follow up on bilateral co-operation. The Chief Executive will soon visit the other eight cities in the Pearl River Delta.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the unemployment rate for January - March 2010 held stable at 2.9% and the underemployment rate also remained unchanged at 1.8% in comparison with the previous period (December 2009 - February 2010). Total labour force was 323,300 in January - March 2010 and the labour force participation rate stood at 71.1%, with the employed population increasing by 600 over the previous period to 313,800. Analyzed by industry, employment of Retail Trade and the Hotel Sector saw increase from the previous period, while that of the Construction Sector and Wholesale Trade registered a decrease. In January - March 2010, number of the unemployed increased by about 300 from the previous period to 9,500, with 5.9% being fresh labour force entrants searching for their first job, down by 2.7 percentage points. In comparison with January - March 2009, the labour force participation rate and the unemployment rate dropped by 1.3 and 0.9 percentage point respectively; meanwhile, the underemployment rate stayed unchanged. In the first quarter of 2010, the unemployment rate of local residents was 3.7%, same as the fourth quarter of 2009; the labour force participation rate of local residents increased slightly by 0.2 percentage point to 66.2%.
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The Institute For Tourism Studies, Macao (IFT) has the honour in inviting Mr. Laurence Loh Kwong Yu, International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) site evaluator for the World Heritage Sites of Macao and Kaiping, PRC, to deliver a public lecture on 26 April 2010 at IFT, on the topic – “What is the Spirit of Place?”. This public lecture, coordinated by the IFT’s Heritage Studies Centre, has attracted around 170 audiences. Finding and keeping “the spirit of place” has always been a major concern for most conservationists in preserving and restoring a physical structure. The spirit of place conveys the cultural essence of a site. It encompasses the meanings of a place accrued through time and through its past and present uses. Expressed through the tangible built heritage, these intangible heritage values give the place its distinctive character, an aura that draws people to the place, speaks to them, engages their emotions and, often, gives them a sublime experience of their surroundings. In this 90-minutes public lecture, Mr. Laurence Loh Kwong Yu acquainted the participants with how conservation of a physical structure articulates its spirit of place. Laurence has over 25 years of experience in protecting, conserving, managing and sustaining the cultural heritage of Malaysia. His expertise and contributions have been acknowledged nationally and regionally. The restoration and adaptive reuse of Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion in Penang, Malaysia, won him the “Most Excellent Project” in the inaugural UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards in 2000. He has received various awards since then and more recently, his work on the restoration of Merdeka Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia was conferred the “Award of Excellence” of the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Culture Heritage Conservation in 2008. In parallel with his professional career path, Laurence has also devoted his time to education and capacity building. He is an associate professor at the University of Hong Kong and at the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property for ICCROM in Rome, Italy. He was the ICOMOS site evaluator for the World Heritage Sites of Macao and Kaiping, PRC and is on the executive committee of the UNESCO-ICCROM Asian Academy of Heritage Management. The IFT’s Heritage Studies Centre was established in 2008. Its mission is to promote the advancement and dissemination of knowledge in the field of heritage by working with intergovernmental agencies, academics and professionals. The Heritage Studies Centre is committed to promoting heritage studies in Macao and internationally, through conducting research and training programmes with local and global partners. Among the different projects, the Centre has written the training manual for the UNESCO Cultural Heritage Specialist Guides Programme that has been translated into six languages and adopted for the UNESCO World Heritage sites in ten countries. The Centre is also the focal point of training programme for Asian Academy of Heritage Management network. It has just hosted the Second UNESCO-ICCROM AAHM Conference on “Urban Heritage and Tourism: Challenges and Opportunities” in December last year, promoting academic exchange in the field.
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