The Macao Special Administrative Region (MSAR) and Guangdong Province will jointly implement the guiding principles of the “two sessions” and convert the strategic deployments laid out in the country’s 15th Five-Year Plan into concrete action, visiting MSAR Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai and Guangdong Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Secretary Huang Kunming agreed in Guangzhou yesterday, the Macao Government Information Bureau (GCS) said in a statement last night.
Both sides will work together to deepen Guangdong-Macao cooperation, advance the high-quality construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), and promote Macao-Hengqin integrated development, deepening Macao-Guangdong cooperation on all fronts, the statement said.
Sam yesterday led an MSAR Government delegation to the capital of Guangdong Province to meet with Huang, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee and Governor of Guangdong Province Meng Fanli, as well as other leading officials of the neighbouring province.
During the meeting, according to the GCS statement, Sam expressed his gratitude to the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee and the Provincial Government for their continued care and support for the sustainable development of the MSAR, particularly their significant contributions to the joint construction of the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin.
The recent “two sessions” in Beijing reviewed and approved the outline of the country’s 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development, Sam noted. The outline explicitly set out a series of steps for important deployments to support Macao in consolidating and enhancing its competitive advantages, and in better integrating into and serving overall national development, thereby bringing new and significant developmental opportunities to Macao, Sam was quoted by the statement as saying.
The “two sessions” denote the annual sessions of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).
The MSAR Government will proactively align with the country’s 15th Five-Year Plan and properly compile and implement the 3rd Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development of the MSAR, Sam said.
The chief executive expressed hope for Guangdong’s continued strong support in jointly advancing the high-quality construction of the Greater Bay Area, building upon the existing foundation of deepening comprehensive Guangdong-Macao cooperation, and thus achieving breakthroughs in key areas, the statement pointed out.
Sam emphasised the need to strengthen the alignment of rules and mechanisms in scientific and technological innovation, economic development, and public services, accelerating the transformation of the Greater Bay Area into a world-class city cluster with global influence and a premier international bay area.
According to the statement, Sam added that Guangdong and Macao must consistently benchmark their performance against President Xi Jinping’s three keypoint requirements in order to step up efforts in building the In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin. It is imperative to implement firmly the “Macao + Hengqin” development positioning, aim for Macao-Hengqin integration, and strengthen Guangdong-Macao synergy, he said.
The focus will be, Sam stressed, on developing a batch of landmark, pioneering projects, including those mentioned in the 15th Five-Year Plan, such as the Macao-Hengqin International Education (University) Town, the Macau International Airport Hengqin Upstream Cargo Terminal, and the Hengqin section of the Guangzhou-Zhuhai (Macao) High-speed Railway.
Meanwhile, efforts should be made to promote the synergistic development of industries in Macao and Hengqin, integrate civic and social services between the two areas, and realise infrastructure connectivity and institutional connectivity in relation to rules and mechanisms.
Sam underlined that the MSAR is looking forward to working hand in hand with Guangdong, based on the principles of reciprocal cooperation, making every effort to elevate to a new level pragmatic cooperation across multiple fields, thereby serving overall national development via higher-quality Guangdong-Macao cooperation.
Meanwhile, Secretary Huang congratulated Macao on the progress achieved in its socio-economic development under Sam’s leadership, thanking Macao for its long-standing strong support for Guangdong’s various endeavours.
Following CPC General Secretary Xi Jinping’s inspection visits in 2024 to Macao and Guangdong, he visited Guangdong again last year to attend and declare open the 15th National Games, which were jointly hosted by Guangdong Province, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, (HKSAR) and the MSAR. This fully demonstrated Xi’s deep and affectionate interest in the development of Guangdong, Macao, and the Greater Bay Area, Huang was quoted by the statement as saying. The resounding success of the 15th National Games vividly showcased the many manifestations of Chinese modernisation in the Greater Bay Area, and clearly highlighted the unique advantages and bright prospects of the “One Country, Two Systems” principle, Huang added.
Secretary Huang also said that the Central People’s Government’s latest Government Work Report and the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan – which were passed at the recently-concluded “two sessions” – included vital deployments relating to the construction of the Greater Bay Area and the development of Hengqin. The documents also provided new and significant opportunities for Guangdong and Macao to advance higher-level cooperation from a new starting point, he added.
Guangdong will deeply implement the guiding principles of Xi’s important speeches on building the Greater Bay Area, as well as his series of important speeches and instructions regarding Guangdong, Huang said. In accordance with the Central People’s Government’s deployments and requirements, Guangdong will anchor itself to the new positioning of “one strategic pivot and two places” and join hands with the HKSAR and the MSAR to make fresh strides in promoting the Greater Bay Area, enabling Guangdong to play better its role as the main force and locomotive of this endeavour, Huang said.
Huang also said that Guangdong aims to shoulder greater leadership responsibility in such matters, setting an example and bearing the heavy burden, while striving to create new advantages and achieve new breakthroughs on this new journey. Huang said that Guangdong is willing to work with Macao to advance pragmatically cooperation in all fields during the period covered by the 15th Five-Year Plan, strengthening planning synergy and policy alignment, and focusing on achieving the second-stage goals of the Cooperation Zone in Hengqin.
Huang also said Guangdong and Macao will work more closely to enhance the quality and efficiency of the Cooperation Zone, continuously deepen infrastructure connectivity and institutional connectivity in terms of rules and mechanisms, and constantly boost the capacity to attract and gather high-quality resources and elements from home and abroad, the statement said.
In addition, the two sides will endeavour to expand the four new industries earmarked for Hengqin and facilitate greater convenience for residents of both places in their daily lives and employment in Hengqin. The two sides will also further strengthen the Macao-Zhuhai pivot, and jointly open a new horizon in Guangdong-Macao cooperation, injecting a continuous stream of new momentum into the high-quality development of the “One Country, Two Systems” principle, Huang concluded.
Members of the MSAR Government delegation participating in the meeting included Secretary for Administration and Justice Wong Sio Chak, Secretary for Economy and Finance Anton Tai Kin Ip and Chief-of-Office of the Chief Executive’s Office Chan Kak.
Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai (left) meets with Secretary of the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee Huang Kunming in Guangzhou yesterday. – Photo: GCS
