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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that visitor arrivals in package tours totalled 183,697 in September 2006, down 5.5% year-on-year. Among them, visitors from Mainland China (140,220) dropped 6.9%, while those from Japan (8,773) and Hong Kong (8,636) rose 47.8% and 7.6% respectively over September 2005. In the first nine months of 2006, visitor arrivals in package tours grew 8.8% over the same period of 2005 to 2,099,627. Number of Macao residents travelling in package tours was 14,287 in September 2006, a significant year-on-year decrease of 40.7%. Mainland China, Thailand and Taiwan, China were the three more popular tour itineraries, which accounted for 76.1%, 6.1% and 4.6% of the total respectively. In the first nine months of 2006, Macao residents travelling in package tours decreased 9.4% to 203,982 compared with the same period of 2005. Meanwhile, 27,072 residents travelled under own arrangements using services provided by travel agencies, a decrease of 6.5% over September 2005; Mainland China (34.2%), Hong Kong (30.4%) and Taiwan, China (16.5%) were the major destinations. In the first nine months of 2006, Macao residents travelled under such arrangements increased 15.7% to 275,205 from the corresponding period of 2005. At the end of September 2006, number of guest rooms available in the hotel industry registered a year-on-year increase of 1,732 rooms (+16.2%) to 12,411 rooms. In addition, a total of 365,094 guests checked into hotels and similar establishments, a growth of 12.1% compared with September 2005. The average hotel occupancy rate was 67.2%, representing a marginal growth of 0.3 percentage point over September 2005; the highest average was in the 4-star hotels, at 73.6%. The average length of stay of hotel guests showed an increase of 0.01 night, at 1.18 nights. The majority of the guests came from Mainland China (53.0%), Hong Kong (28.9%) and Taiwan, China (3.1%). In the first nine months of 2006, the number of hotel guests increased 11.6% over the same period of 2005 to 3,343,161. In the first nine months of 2006, hotel guests (excluding Macao residents) accounted for 41.1% of the total number of tourists, which was lower than the 42.8% recorded in the same period of 2005.
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As part of the Co-operation Programme in the Legal Field between the European Union and Macao, a seminar on “Mutual Legal Assistance – Civil Matters – Recognition and Enforcement of Arbitration Awards” will start tomorrow, November 13, at 6:30 pm, at the Auditorium of the Legal and Judicial Training Centre (Luso-International Bank Building, 18th floor). This training activity will have as speakers Mr. Christopher To, Secretary-General of the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre and fellow of The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and The Hong Kong Institute of Arbitrators, and Mr. Gary Soo, Barrister at the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and fellow of The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and The Hong Kong Institute of Arbitrators. The seminar will be conducted daily, from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm, until next Friday, November 17. Inserted in the program are the following topics: Overview of International Commercial Arbitration; Agreement to Arbitrate; Appointment of Arbitral Tribunal; Ethics, Rights and Powers of Arbitrators; Commencement and Pre-hearing Proceedings; The Hearing Process; Requirements of Arbitral Awards; Judicial Review of Arbitral Awards and Enforcement of Arbitral Awards. The Legal and Judicial Training Centre and the International Law Office are responsible for organising this seminar, which will be taught in English and targets Law degree holders. The Co-operation Programme in the Legal Field between the European Union and Macao, which incorporates this seminar, has as its main objective the “Consolidation of the Macao Legal System” and is currently in its fifth and final year, taking place until February 2007. The total budget for the programme is of 1.980.000 euros, shared in equal parts by the European Union and Macao. The co-ordination of the Co-operation Programme is at the responsibility of the International Law Office, being the organisation of the pertaining actions ensured by several other entities of the MSAR’s Government, namely the Legal and Judicial Training Centre, the Legal Affairs Bureau, the Economic Services and the Institute of European Studies, other than the International Law Office itself.
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Macau Government Tourist Office（MGTO）attended World Travel Market 2006（WTM） in London to promote Macau tourism and its valuable World Heritage as well as to uplift Macau’s profile through this fair. Deputy Director of MGTO, Ms. Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes and other MGTO staff members together with some representatives from Macau’s tourism industry went to London to join the trade event. MGTO set up a pavilion at the fair to promote Macau’s World Heritage and to introduce business travel, cultural travel and leisure travel of Macau. World Travel Market 2006 took place at Excel London from 6 to 9 September, in between there were seminars, conferences, debates and performances. WTM brings together worldwide buyers and sellers from around the world. Last year, it attracted 48,211 travel industry professionals representing over 202 countries or regions. During the event, Pacific Asia Travel Association UK Chapter with the support of PATA International, organized at the House of Commons at the Palace of Westminster on 7 November this first keynote dinner, which was sponsored by the Macau Government Tourist Office. A wide variety of UK companies and associations from the travel sector were invited to join the dinner where MGTO’s officials had a chance to meet top-level guests of the UK travel sector. It was also an opportunity to uplift Macau’s profile and showcase the destination.
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To celebrate the 140th anniversary of Dr Sun Yat-Sen’s birth, Macau Government Tourist Office specially organize the “Dr. Sun Yat-Sen and Macau – A Photographic Commemoration on the Occasion of the 140th Anniversary of his Birth” to commemorate this legendary figure. Chief of Office of the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Alexis Tam, Vice Director of Coordination Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in Macau SAR, Luo Xiangzhu, Director of the Macau Government Tourist Office, João Manuel Costa Antunes, Director of Zhuhai Tourism Bureau, Deng Panren and President of the Macau History Association Chan Su Weng officiated the opening ceremony today. Being the largest photo exhibition of Dr Sun Yat-Sen in Macau in recent years, the exhibition “Dr. Sun Yat-Sen and Macau – A Photographic Commemoration on the Occasion of the 140th Anniversary of his Birth” is staged at the exhibition hall of Macau Tourism and Cultural Activities Center at the Ruins of St Paul’s, where 130 historic photos of Dr Sun Yat-Sen provided by Chan Su Weng of Macau History Association are on display. Dr Sun is an important figure in the modern history of China. The years Dr Sun spent in Macau formed a valuable episode of Macau’s history. Through the exhibition “Dr. Sun Yat-Sen and Macau – A Photographic Commemoration on the Occasion of the 140th Anniversary of his Birth” organized by MGTO, the public can get a glimpse of the life of this legendary figure. Dr Sun’s home village, Cuiheng is just 37 kilometres from Macau and both cities were historically under the jurisdiction of Xiangshan. Dr Sun Yat-Sen had a close relationship with Macau, where he first visited with his mother when he was young. In 1892, he returned to Macau to take up the post as voluntary doctor at the Kiang Wu Hospital, where he set up “Sun Medicine Clinic” and was the first Chinese to practice western medicine in Macau. Sun not only had profound friendship with Chinese in Macau, but also made friends with many Portuguese. There are now in Macau 3 statues of Dr Sun Yat-Sen, as well as a memorial house, a garden and two streets in Dr Sun’s name. Apart from the photo exhibition, MGTO has also launched a series of activities to commemorate Dr Su Yat-Sen, including free “Tour of Dr Sun Yat-Sen’s Macau Days and World Heritage” for citizens and visitors who can get a greater understand of Dr Sun’s days in Macau. In conjunction with the Zhuhai Tourism Bureau and Zhongshan Tourism Bureau, MGTO has organized the “Greater Xiangshan – Dr Sun Yat-Sen Historical Tour” and printed guidebooks about the tour to enrich the travel experience of the visitors. Macau, Zhongshan and Zhuhai Tourism Bureaux also joined hands with Zhongshan TV Station to produce “Dreams of Xiangshan”, a TV program of 8 episodes and was also broadcasted on the Chinese channel of Teledifusão De Macau last month, for the Macau citizens to learn more about the Greater Xiangshan in the past.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, today entended his congratulations to Dr Margaret Chan, following the confimation of her appointment as the next World Health Organization Director-General. Mr Ho said that Dr Chan was very experienced and had served in the public hygiene sector for many years. She became the first Chinese to be elected to head an international organisation. He said he was certain that Dr Chan would made further contribution in her new position.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, will deliver his Policy Address for the Fiscal Year 2007 on 16 November (Thursday). The session, to be held in the Legislative Assembly at 3 pm, will be followed by a press conference at 5 pm in Government Headquarters. These will be broadcasted live on the Portal Website of the Macao SAR (http://www.gov.mo) and the website of the Legislative Assembly (http://www.al.gov.mo). Chinese and Portuguese versions of the Policy Address will be available on the websites. On 17 November (Friday), Mr Ho will attend a plenary meeting of the Legislative Assembly to answer questions raised by the legislators. Teledifusão de Macao and Radio Macao will also carry live broadcasts of the Policy Address, the press conference and the plenary meeting. On 20 November (Monday), the Legislative Assembly will discuss the budget of the Government for the Fiscal Year 2007. From 22 November (Wednesday) to 1 December (Friday), the five Secretaries will attend five sessions of plenary meeting of the Legislative Assembly, to introduce their policies and answer the legislators' questions.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, today met with the Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union, Mr Alpha Oumar Konaré. Mr and Mrs Konaré arrived in Macao for an one-day visit in the morning. The Chairperson paid a courtesy call on the Chief Executive, and attended a luncheon hosted by Mr Ho. Mr Konaré visited Hong Kong and Macao after attending the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) earlier on. Mr Konaré was elected the President of Mali in 1992 and was re-elected in 1997. He became the Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union in 2003.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service shows that there were 1,242 industrial establishments operating in 2005, a decrease of 32 units (-2.5%) over 2004. Total number of persons engaged was 35,745, down 4.9%. Gross output and gross value added amounted to MOP15.906 billion (-5.4%) and MOP3.924 billion (-0.2%) respectively compared with 2004. In the manufacturing sector, there were 1,238 establishments engaging 34,688 persons, which represented decreases of 2.5% and 5.2% respectively over 2004. Analyzed by size of establishments, the 967 establishments (78.1% of the total) with less than 30 persons engaged employed 19.2% of the total workforce, with 6,657 persons. In contrast, the 85 establishments (6.9% of the total) with 100 or more persons engaged absorbed 49.1% of the total workforce, with 17,018 persons. Gross output of the manufacturing sector registered a year-on-year decrease of 10.8% to MOP12.633 billion; gross value added amounted to MOP2.55 billion, down 1.6%. Manufacture of wearing apparel and manufacture of textiles accounted for the biggest shares of the manufacturing sector, with gross output reaching MOP7.704 billion (-12.5%) and MOP2.0 billion (-29.5%), and gross value added amounting to MOP1.469 billion (-5.0%) and MOP306 million (-23.9%) respectively. There were 3 electricity, gas and water supply establishments operating in 2005, with 1,032 persons engaged, up 4.0% over 2004. Gross output increased by 23.4% to MOP3.254 billion, while gross value added rose by 2.8% to MOP1.364 billion.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that in the first three quarters of 2006, 9,892 contracts of sales and purchases of real estate were made, with value of MOP8.52 billion, down 40.5% and 38.0% respectively over the same period of 2005. In the third quarter of 2006, a total of 3,465 contracts of sales and purchases of real estate were made, of which 4,552 real estate units were transacted, a year-on-year decrease of 26.1%. The corresponding total value went up 3.8% to MOP3.68 billion. In comparison with the second quarter of 2006, the number and value increased 12.1% and 41.8% respectively. In the first three quarters of 2006, the total value of mortgage credits reached MOP60.6 billion, up 4 times year-on-year. In the third quarter of 2006, the total value of mortgage credits was MOP17.68 billion, of which the mortgage credits not involving actual property transactions reached MOP16.5 billion, whereas those related to purchases of real estate was MOP1.18 billion, equivalent to 6.7% of the total. The total value surged 4.3 times over the third quarter of 2005, and the credits involving actual property transactions registered a decrease of 29.1%. Compared with the second quarter of 2006, the above indicators were down 56.1% and up 0.2% respectively. According to the information supplied by the Finance Services Bureau, a total of 16,421 units were transacted in the real estate market in the first three quarters of 2006, with value of MOP13.32 billion. In the third quarter of 2006, the number of units transacted was 6,024 with a total value of MOP5.25 billion. The majority was residential units (63.3% of the total; 3,811 units), accounting for MOP3.28 billion in value. Among all the units transacted, 940 units were exempted from property tax (i.e. they were new buildings) and their value amounted to MOP1.5 billion. In the third quarter of 2006, the average transaction price of residential units per square meter of usable area was MOP11,317, up 1.4% and 13.1% over the third quarter of 2005 and second quarter of 2006 respectively. Meanwhile, the average transaction prices of residential units in the Macao Peninsula and Taipa were MOP10,275 and MOP14,620 per square meter respectively, higher than the levels recorded in the third quarter of 2005 and second quarter of 2006. Moreover, the average transaction price of residential units in Coloane was MOP14,902 per square meter, down 7.2% compared with the third quarter of 2005. The average transaction price of industrial units per square meter of usable area continued to rise, reaching MOP4,450 in the third quarter, up 32.8% and 16.1% over the third quarter of 2005 and second quarter of 2006 respectively. In addition, the average transaction price of office units per square meter of usable area was MOP19,579, up 31.1% and 10.9% over the third quarter of 2005 and second quarter of 2006 respectively. Among the office units, the area of Praia Grande and Penha recorded the highest average, at MOP23,433 per square meter, whereas the area of NAPE and Aterros da Baía da Praia Grande had the lowest average, at MOP17,290.
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Data collection for “Macao Health Survey 2006” has been completed in late October after a period of more than four months. The survey was jointly organized by the Health Bureau of the Macao SAR government and the Macao Polytechnic Institute to study the prevalence of selected diseases and risk factors among the adult population in Macao. This is the first health survey in Macao with an approach of a random sample of population and a representative sample size, in a total of 3,120 participants. The next step will be data entry and data analysis. According to the plan, a final report of the survey will be presented in the end of next year. The government will then have more details about the health status of the Macao inhabitants. The Coordination Committee of the “Macao Health Survey 2006” appreciates the support from the society and particularly, all the participants in the survey, as well as the strict collaboration from all personnel involved in the total process. For inquiries or suggestions, please call “Macao Health Survey 2006” coordination center at 5976114 from 3:00 pm to 10:00 pm during Monday to Friday.
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