The Chief Executive, Mr Sam Hou Fai, concluded his visit to Portugal on Tuesday (21 April) afternoon local time. He described the visit – his first overseas since taking office – as a great success, having achieved its intended goal of deepening the traditional friendship between Macao and Portugal, while opening up new opportunities for pragmatic cooperation.
Before his departure from Lisbon, Mr Sam held a number of high-level meetings with Portuguese officials on Tuesday morning. These included meetings with the President of the Portuguese Republic, Mr António José Seguro; the President of the Portuguese Parliament, Mr José Pedro Aguiar-Branco; the Prime Minister of Portugal, Mr Luís Montenegro; and the President of the Supreme Court of Justice of Portugal, Mr João Cura Mariano. During these meetings, Mr Sam shared details of Macao’s successful implementation of the “One country, two systems” principle, Macao’s unique advantages as a platform for cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, and the significant development opportunities arising from the Guangdong-Macao Intensive Cooperation Zone in Hengqin.
Speaking to reporters as he wrapped up his visit to Portugal, the Chief Executive said the four Portuguese officials he met on Tuesday morning all agreed that Macao has an important role to play in the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Portugal, and that Macao should fully tap into its potential. The representatives from Macao and Portugal also agreed to continue deepening exchanges across all fronts and jointly create better prospects for bilateral cooperation, he stated.
Mr Sam also noted that he had received positive comments in earlier meetings during his visit to Portugal, namely with the country’s Minister of State and Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Economy and of Territorial Cohesion, and the Minister of Justice. Topics discussed during those meetings included trade exchanges, tourism, the organisation of the justice system, training of Chinese-Portuguese bilingual professionals, judicial cooperation, finance, high technology, and innovation. The Portuguese officials agreed to further strengthen economic and trade cooperation between China and Portugal through the use of Macao’s role as a platform, and to explore opportunities for companies from both sides to jointly expand into other Portuguese-speaking markets. Mr Sam emphasised that Portuguese officials hoped that, on the one hand, companies from the Chinese mainland and Macao could leverage Portugal's geographical advantages as a gateway to markets in Africa, Europe, and Latin America, and, on the other hand, Portuguese companies could make full use of Macao’s role as a platform to enter the Chinese-mainland market.
According to Mr Sam, a total of 61 cooperation agreements was signed in Portugal by the Macao Special Administrative Region (MSAR) Government delegation and the MSAR business delegation. These agreements cover various fields, including: cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, trade and commerce, high technology, tourism, education, ‘Big Health’, MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions), and culture and sports. Mr Sam said that upon his return to Macao, the MSAR Government will strive to ensure the effective implementation of these agreements by requiring relevant public administration departments to refine their efforts and ensure that projects proceed as planned. Meanwhile, the MSAR Government will establish a communication platform for Macao and Chinese mainland enterprises to expand exchanges and cooperation with companies in Portugal, in order to strengthen mutual collaboration.
Regarding Portuguese-language education and promotion, the Chief Executive noted that both the number of Macao schools offering Portuguese-language courses and the proportion of Macao teenagers learning Portuguese have reached record highs. Mr Sam said that the Portuguese side fully recognised this achievement and expressed hope that the MSAR Government would continue to strongly support such initiatives.
During his stay in Lisbon, the Chief Executive also met young people from Macao studying in Portugal. He said he was deeply moved to see the students' youthful energy and to hear about their aspirations to contribute to the development of Macao and Hengqin, and to integrate into the country's development. In addition, during his visit to Portugal, Mr Sam attended several events in Lisbon organised by the MSAR Government.
He pointed out that the visit had helped enhance mutual understanding between Macao and Portugal, and had deepened the traditional friendship between the two sides. The Chief Executive said he firmly believes that cooperation between Macao and Portugal will be elevated to a new level, with Macao continuing to play a unique role and making further contributions to the continued development of the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Portugal.
