Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai arrived in Jiangmen City yesterday afternoon where he met with Chen Anming, secretary of the Jiangmen Communist Party of China (CPC) Municipal Committee, president of the Municipal People’s Congress Standing Committee and secretary of the Party Leadership Group of the Municipal People’s Congress Standing Committee, as well as Mayor Wu Xiaohui, the Macau Government Information Bureau (GCS) said in a statement last night.
According to the statement, the two sides exchanged in-depth views on further strengthening cooperation between Macau and Jiangmen, particularly in industrial collaborative development.
Sam expressed his delight at visiting Jiangmen, noting that the city is a renowned hometown of overseas Chinese with profound historical and cultural heritage.
Like Macau, Sam stressed, Jiangmen also boasts UNESCO World Heritage sites, enabling the two places to synergise cultural and tourism resources and jointly develop “multi-destination” world-class heritage travel routes to promote mutual growth in tourism.
Sam added that within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA), Jiangmen possesses abundant land resources, convenient transportation links, and strengths in multiple traditional industries, giving it broad prospects for development. Therefore, Sam said, Macau hopes to work closely with Jiangmen to seize the significant opportunities presented by the GBA initiative, building on their existing solid cooperation to leverage their respective core advantages, enhance synergies, and chart a new chapter in high-quality integrated development.
Reflecting on his working visit to Jiangmen, he pointed out that Macau and Jiangmen already have a strong foundation for cooperation in food manufacturing, and the success of Jiangmen’s overseas Chinese-themed cultural and tourism projects provides valuable lessons for Macau.
Sam emphasised that the new-term Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR) government is committed to promoting appropriately diversified economic development, advancing the four key industries and the “Four New Industries” in the Guangdong-Macau In-depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin.
Sam underlined that Jiangmen’s Daguang Bay Economic Zone, which connects Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macau while leveraging the city’s rich marine resources, has clear advantages in diversified industries. Looking ahead, the two places can harness their complementary strengths to create a key collaborative platform for the GBA, Sam said.
Prior to the high-level meeting attended by senior officials from Macau and Jiangmen, Sam visited a Macau-invested food enterprise in Jiangmen to learn about successful cross-border cooperation and the advantages for Macau businesses operating locally. He and his delegation then toured the China Qiaodu Museum of Overseas Chinese, gaining insights into the rich Wuyi overseas Chinese culture and Jiangmen’s cultural-tourism development projects.
Sam concluded his three-city Greater Bay Area tour in the evening and returned with his entourage to Macau last night.
Jiangmen, which has a population of 4.8 million, lies some 64 kilometres northwest of Macau.
Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai (left) and Communist Party of China (CPC) Jiangmen Municipal Committee Secretary Chen Anming meet in Jiangmen yesterday. – Photo: GCS
