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Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Annual Meeting 2009 opened today at the MGM Grand Macau. Over the weekend internal meetings of the association will take place, participated by PATA 2008/2009 Chairman Janice Antonson, PATA 2009/2010 chairman Phornsiri Manoharn, PATA president and chief executive officer Gregory Duffell and Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) director João Manuel Costa Antunes, among more than 100 members. The program for the first two days includes meetings of the Human Resource Advisory Committee, Membership Advisory Committee, Communications Advisory Committee, Foundation Board of Trustees, Honours Committee, Events Advisory Committee, Strategic Intelligence Advisory Committee, Sustainable Tourism Advisory Committee. The Board of Directors and the Life Members Forum will also meet. On welcoming the PATA Annual Meeting, Costa Antunes said that “the tourism development of Macau has been unprecedented in the past few years, but when the global financial crisis hits, Macau is no exception and we also feel the pinch in our economy, especially the tourism industry. Like many countries and regions who have adopted stimulus measures to shore up the tourism industry downturn, the Macau SAR Government is also putting every effort to launch soon a relief scheme to support the tourism industry of Macau.” “I also read that the PATA Tourism Forecasts 2009-2011 suggest growth in international arrivals for many destinations across the region – despite the global economic downturn. There are opportunities out there and we need to be proactive and innovative in discovering new opportunities instead of just reacting passively in a crisis mode”, he added. On Monday will be held a Business Forum under the topic “Discovering Opportunities in Tough Times” – the summit of the PATA Annual Meeting. Close to 200 participants, among them speakers, guests and media are expected. PATA invited around 20 speakers, among tourism industry personalities and academics to discuss problems and trends of Asia Pacific tourism industry development. The key guest speakers are General Manager of Visa China Sheng Li and Google Inc. vice president of sales for Greater China region John Liu. The organizers invited international, Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau media to report on the event, and a media center will be set up at the MGM Grand Macau. On Tuesday, the last day of the PATA Annual Meeting, the PATA Chapters Meeting will take place, followed by a summary of the meeting presented by the president of the association. PATA is the most influential tourism association in the Asia Pacific. MGTO joined PATA in 1966. PATA’s membership includes nearly 100 government, state and city tourism bodies, more than 55 airlines and cruise lines, and hundreds of travel industry companies. In addition, thousands of travel professionals belong to a global network of PATA chapters. For more information about PATA, please go to: www.pata.org This press release is available at: www.macautourism.gov.mo
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, and the Secretary of the Hainan CPC Provincial Committee, Mr Wei Liucheng, met in Hainan today. Mr Wei said the co-operation and exchanges between Macao and Hainan have been elevated since the establishment of the Macao SAR. The economic focus of Hainan was on tourism and the two sides could further their co-operation in the future, said Mr Wei. Mr Ho said that the two sides are complementary to one another in terms of resources in tourism industry and the key for further co-operation would be on transportation. He said that Macao would make further studies on how to enhance co-operation in tourism industry with Hainan. The meeting was also attended by Executive Vice Governor of Hainan, Mr Fang Xiaoyu, and Chief-of-Office of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Ho Veng On.
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Premier Mr Wen Jiabao today acknowledged Macao’s efforts in dealing with the current financial crisis. The Premier made his acknowledgement know when he met the Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, in Hainan today, when they met at the sidelines of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2009. Mr Ho had briefed the Premier on the latest economic situation in Macao. Mr Wen said the financial crisis made a huge impact on Macao, and the situation was generally stable since everything that had to be done was carried out accordingly. He said he acknowledged the Government’s effort in dealing with the crisis and hoped that it could continue to work vigorously. He said he believed the Government should prepare for a long battle with the crisis and expected more difficulties ahead, so it should act proactively. Mr Ho said he concurred with what Mr Wen had said, and thanked him for the support of the Central Government, especially in the early stages. The Deputy Director of Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, Mr Zhou Bo, and Chief-of-Office of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Ho Veng On, were also present at the meeting.
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Headed by the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of the Macau SAR Chui Sai On, about 200 representatives from the Macau Government Tourist Office, the Macau tourism sector, media and performers went to Shanghai for the “Macau Week In Shanghai” to promote the 10th Anniversary of the Establishment of Macau SAR and tourism products and resources under the theme “Experience Macau Celebrations!” The week-long event is kicked off with a colorful inaugural ceremony and cultural show tonight (April 17) at the Century Square on Nanjing Road. Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Chui Sai On, Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in Macau SAR, Gao Yan, Chief of Office for the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Alexis Tam and Director of MGTO João Manuel Costa Antunes from Macau, Member of the Standing Committee of the Shanghai Municipal Committee and Head of the United Front Work Department of Shanghai Municipal Party Committee Yang Xiaodu, Vice Mayor of Shanghai Municipal People's Government Zhao Wen, Director-General of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of Shanghai Municipal People's Government Li Ming Jun, Chairman of Shanghai Municipal Tourism Administration Dao Shuming and District Major of Shanghai Huangpu District People's Government Zhou Wei from Shanghai are officiated guests at the inaugural ceremony. This is a significant year for Macau SAR as it celebrates its 10th Anniversary. Organized by the MGTO, Shanghai Municipal Tourism Administration and Shanghai Huangpu District People’s Government, with Huangpu district Tourism Administration of Shanghai Municipality as the executive organizer and Macau Grand Prix Committee and Association of Macau Restaurant Merchants as the co-organizers, the large-scale campaign “Macau Week in Shanghai” will promote the 10th Anniversary of the Establishment of Macau SAR and tourism products and resources under the theme “Experience Macau Celebrations!” The inaugural ceremony and cultural show features famous Chinese tenor Warren Mok and soprano Liu Lian, Macau band Soler and singer Casimiro Pinto “Miro”, Venetian’s Streetmosphere™, Portuguese folk dance team and Tuna Macaense. Held from April 16 to 22 in Shanghai, highlights of the “Macau Week in Shanghai” include press conference, gala dinner, inaugural ceremony and cultural show, tourism and cultural exhibition, food promotion, panels of Macau Heritage Sites, parade and shows featuring 103 performers. “Macau Week in Shanghai” set up a spacious exhibition area at the Nanjing Road pedestrian zone showcasing Tourism & Cultural Exhibition, Products/Projects Exhibits, Events Promotion Stand, Information Counters and Panels of Macau Heritage Sites. The exhibition area, which opens to public till April 22, has drawn crowds of Shanghai citizens when it opened earlier today. Banners on lampposts, outdoor billboards and advertising balloons are also set up at Nanjing Road to boost promotional effect and atmosphere. Large-scale miniatures of some of Macau’s iconic world heritage sites are displayed at the Tourism and Cultural Exhibition area at the Century Square of Nanjing Road, including a 7 meter tall models of the Ruins of St Paul’s and Guia Lighthouse which allow the Shanghai citizens to “touch” Macau’s unique cultural landmarks. 14 travel trade from Macau also set up booths at the Products/Projects Exhibits area, among which, 8 companies built their own 50-square meter individual booths to showcase their images and characteristics. The Events Promotion Stand features a model of the Macau Grand Prix Control Tower, with one Formula 3 machine and two motorbikes. Tourism information on Macau and souvenirs are being distributed at the Information Counters. The “Historic Center of Macau”, which has been listed as UNESCO’s World Heritage in 2005, is a valuable tourism treasure of Macau. The Panels of Macau Heritage Sites set up on the Nanjing Road will surely give a savor of these East meets West legacy to the public in Shanghai. Delicious Macau snacks and deserts are also on offer at the Food Promotion, like pork chop buns, bacalhau balls, croquetes and marble cake. Visitors to “Macau Week in Shanghai” from April 18 to 22 can also enjoy parade and shows including dragon and lions dance, Venetian’s Streetmosphere™, Portuguese folk dance as well as performance by Macau singers and Tuna Macaense. The organizer hosted a press conference on April 16 to introduce the program of “Macau Week in Shanghai” attended by close to 100 media from Shanghai and Macau. This press release is available at the website: http://www.macautourism.gov.mo
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, has arrived in Hainan today for tomorrow’s opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2009. Speaking to reporters at the airport before his departure, Mr Ho said he would update Premier Wen Jiabao on Macao’s latest development if they had the opportunity to meet there. Asked about the drop in tax revenue in the first quarter of the year, Mr Ho said it was within expectation, due to the economic boom in the past few years and the impact of the current global financial crisis. He said Macao could expect a decrease in the tax revenue this year, though the figure would be within the expectation of the Government. Asked about the election of his successor, Mr Ho said that the Chief Executive Election Committee will be formed on April 26 and he expected the electoral procedure and election date would be announced early next month.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that there were 130 schools and institutions providing regular education in the 2007/2008 academic year, comprising 12 institutions of higher education and 118 schools engaging in non-tertiary education, i.e. pre-primary, primary and/or secondary (including vocational-technical secondary) education. Among the 102 private schools providing non-tertiary education, 76 are within the universal education network. At the end of the 2007/2008 academic year, there were 18,743 students attending higher education, up by 7.3% over the previous academic year, with local students accounting for 68.5%; meanwhile number of students in non-tertiary education decreased by 4.9% to 82,400, with primary students (30,033) registered a notable decrease of 7.4%, and those in secondary (43,218) and pre-primary education (9,149) also went down by 3.4% and 3.2% respectively. Total number of teachers engaging in regular education was 6,539; the teacher/student ratio for regular education was 1 to 15.5; the ratio for non-tertiary and higher education was 1 to 17.2 and 1 to 10.7 respectively. The Education Survey also covered 10 schools providing special education, 4 schools providing recurrent education, 132 establishments providing adult education, as well as 144 private tutorial centres. Compared with the previous academic year, number of students attending special education dropped by 2.4% to 480, those of recurrent education went up by 14.2% to 578; besides, course enrolment in adult education totalled 130,410, up by 9.3%. A total of 4,784 students were receiving auxiliary tutorial services at 144 private tutorial centres, with 70.0% being primary students and 18.2% being secondary students. As regard the 2008/2009 academic year, there were 22,289 students enrolled in higher education and 76,918 students in non-tertiary education at the end of November 2008.
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Macao would promote economic diversification development as an international centre to attract tourism and leisure visitors, the Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, said today at the plenary meeting of the Legislative Assembly. Mr Ho was expressing his macroscopic thought on the role of Macao Special Administrative Region on “The Outline of the Plan for the Reform and Development of the Pearl River Delta”. He said the Outline had scientifically expounded the position of Guangdong Province, Hong Kong and Macao, and laid a solid foundation in enhancing the mutual co-operation and in promoting Macao’s economic diversification. Following the integration of regional co-operation, such as the establishment of Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and the Inter-city light rail network of the Pearl River Delta cities, and the Central Government had announced the opening up of Hengqin Island to tie in Macao with a diversified economy, all these beneficial conditions had deepened the co-operation between Zhuhai and Macao. Mr Ho said the diversification of Macao’s economy would break through the monopoly economic industry. However, further regional co-operation would bring a great opportunity to the whole city, and this would bring a deep working pressure of the next Government, and that the future Government should input greater efforts in dealing with different issues.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, said today that building a new University of Macau campus on Hengqin Island in Zhuhai would boost the long-term development of the institution. Answering legislators’ questions at a plenary session of the Legislative Assembly, Mr Ho said the plan would carry historic significance as it would provide more space for the university to expand and would benefit its future development. Since the new campus would be the first construction project jointly steered by Zhuhai and Macao, certainly the two sides would gain much experience from it, he said. He said that the university had conducted a wide range of internal consultation over the proposal of the new campus and gathered opinions among the community. He said worries and doubts over the proposal were comprehensible. The proposal had been submitted to the Central Government, and the academic freedom enjoyed by the university will continue to be endeared. Speaking on the bills regarding the rank and grade systems of civil servants and regulation of department heads and supervisors, which had been submitted to the Legislative Assembly for examination, Mr Ho said that the bills were aimed at solving some long-standing issues and should not be deemed as a plan to raise remuneration of civil servants. He said that the Government would not amend the rank and grade bill significantly and its promises made to the civil servants would remain unchanged. As for the bill of regulating department heads and supervisors, Mr Ho said the Government would pay heed to the legislators and make necessary amendments.
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The Government would continue to cut the number of imported workers and crack down on illegal workers, the Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, said today. Speaking at a plenary session of the Legislative Assembly, Mr Ho said the number of imported workers shrunk from about 104,000 last September to some 87,000 in March, with most of the cuts in the construction sector. He said that the Government would continue to ensure the job priority of local workers, yet the contribution of imported labour should not be unacknowledged. He said that the Government had enforced a host of measures in cutting the number of imported labour. For example, companies in catering, hotel and gaming industries were asked to gradually cut the number of imported labour by half when renewing their work permits. Moreover, the Government and gaming companies had reached consensus in completely cutting the imported labour working as table games supervisors and provide more than 1,000 managerial positions to local workers. The Government would continue to cut imported labour in the next few months. However, it was unrealistic to stop all imported labour at once, as Macao, an all-round tourism and entertainment hub, should maintain its service standard at a competitive level, not to mention smaller companies’ difficulties in finding suitable replacements in a short space of time. The Government and trade associations would launch more training courses for local workers to enable them to fill the vacancy left by imported workers. The Government would also step up its efforts in combating illegal workers. He said he hoped that the Legislative Assembly could put the article regulating illegal workers on its top agenda when the Assembly discuss the imported labour bill. To prevent overstayers from working illegally, the Government would also liaise with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and some countries to revise the visa-on-arrival policies for visitors from some countries.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, is scheduled to leave for Hainan tomorrow to attend the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2009. Under the theme "Asia: Managing beyond Crisis", the three-day event will be highlighted by the presence of Premier Wen Jiabao, President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Mr Asif Ali Zardari, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Mr Nursultan Abishevich Nazarbayev, President of the Republic of Togo, Mr Faure Gnassingbe, as well as prominent officials from about 20 countries and renowned business leaders and scholars. Participants of the event will discuss the challenges stemming from the global financial crisis, the balance between opening and monitoring, the economic outlook in 2009, financial innovation, and the development of emerging economies. The Secretary for Administration and Justice, Ms Florinda Chan, will be Acting Chief Executive while Mr Ho is away.
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