MACAU, April 15 - The Macao Special Administrative Region (MSAR) Government will expedite a study for establishing a new government industrial fund and a technology achievement transformation orientation fund, commissioning a third-party institution to carry out preliminary related research work within the year.
The above announcement was made by the Chief Executive, Mr Sam Hou Fai, on Tuesday afternoon during a Legislative Assembly question and answer (Q&A) session on the Policy Address for the Fiscal Year 2025.
Mr Sam said that the Government’s establishment of an orientation fund was an important policy tool to support the development of emerging industries. Currently, the relevant working group is planning to entrust a third-party institution to conduct preliminary research on the fund's capital scale, management model, investment objectives, and operating model, to ensure that the fund design meets the actual development needs of Macao.
The Chief Executive pointed out that promoting appropriate economic diversification in Macao was in response to a call by the Central Government. Drawing from the experiences of Hong Kong and Shenzhen in relation to emerging sectors such as high-tech industries and biomedicine, the supporting role of government-led funds has been proven to produce positive results. Therefore, the MSAR Government hopes to increase support and financial investment in a variety of industries, via the orientation fund, and diversify Macao's capital market.
He added that Macao's investment-fund sector had developed to a certain extent over the past few years, and Macao's first fund open to public investors was established last year. The Government is amending the Investment Fund Law and increasing the introduction of private investment funds to allow for more diversified capital investment options and inject new impetus into industrial development.
Regarding the construction of the Macao Science and Technology Research and Development Industrial Park, Mr Sam said that this was a major infrastructure project in the MSAR. The Government will strive to build the project to serve the nation’s strategic needs and make use of Macao’s international cooperation platform function, providing space and supporting facilities suitable for the development of the science and technology sectors. This is to create better conditions to attract high-quality foreign technology companies to set up shop in Macao, he said.
Regarding the effective use of land to boost economic development, Mr Sam said that Macao currently has land resources that can be used to develop emerging industries. In order to make good use of these resources, the Government has proposed to build the Macao International Comprehensive Tourism and Cultural Zone, and the Macao Science and Technology Research and Development Industrial Park. It is currently studying the site selection for these projects. It is expected that relevant work can be started in the second half of this year, and the Government will listen to public opinions regarding site selection, architectural design and project content.
Regarding the issue of career development for young people, the Chief Executive noted that Macao was a small place, and given its current industrial structure, it was difficult to find diverse employment options in the MSAR, unlike other regions in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Therefore, the Government needs to take multiple measures to create more employment opportunities and support young people to work in the Greater Bay Area. Steps include increasing the number of places for the Mainland Internship Program for Macao Tertiary Students. There is also the newly-launched Macao Youth Employment Program in the Greater Bay Area, with internship allowances and employment subsidies to encourage young people in Macao to go to other places in the Greater Bay Area, broaden their horizons and gain experience.
Regarding the development of the Guangdong-Macao Intensive Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, Mr Sam said that the Government will take on as a major task the high-quality realisation of the second phase development goals of the Cooperation Zone, with the ultimate objective of integrating Macao and Hengqin. The MSAR Government has established the Leading Group for Promoting the Construction of the Guangdong-Macao Intensive Cooperation Zone and a cross-departmental legal task force for the integration of Macao and Hengqin, to increase the MSAR's overall coordination of the Cooperation Zone’s construction.
Mr Sam stressed that legal system development was a very important part of the overall development of the Cooperation Zone, and the Secretary for Administration and Justice and his team were promoting related work.
In terms of cultivating and attracting talented people to Macao, Mr Sam said that the Government had – through a series of supporting measures – forms of targeted training, to develop individuals with talents needed for appropriate economic diversification. These include education planning, non-higher education courses, student career planning, scholarships, and higher education courses.
Mr Sam added that the construction of the Macao-Hengqin International Education (University) City had been included in the list of major infrastructure to be developed. Among them, the project of the University of Macau has started, and will be fully promoted to suit the development direction of the four nascent industries in the Cooperation Zone. In addition, the MSAR government is actively creating platforms to attract talented people to settle in Macao. The talent importation scheme has entered a second phase. From August 2023 to the end of last month, 575 applicants have been included in the "List of Recommended Talents" and a third phase for the plan is also under study.
Regarding the construction of the Macao Pearl River West Bank International Air Transport Hub (Port), Mr Sam said that the cargo volume of Macau International Airport exceeded 100,000 tonnes last year, an increase of nearly 70 percent over the previous year. The Government will make full use of Macao’s unique geographical advantages in terms of its siting on the west bank of the Pearl River, and do a good job in the expansion of Macau International Airport and the construction of the forward cargo terminal in Hengqin, so as to enhance the scale and competitiveness of air cargo at Macau International Airport as an international air transport hub, helping Macao make greater contributions to the country’s opening up to the outside world.
In terms of supporting SMEs, Mr Sam said that the Government will continue to pay attention to the latest operating conditions of local SMEs, and review and optimise in a timely manner various measures and policies to support the development of SMEs. The Government will also set up a cross-departmental working group on business regulations to explore optimisation measures to support SMEs in terms of regulations and administrative procedures.
When asked about administrative reform, Mr. Sam pointed out that strengthening the overall public administration coordination mechanism was an important measure in order to improve comprehensively governance efficiency. The current-term Government has established six leading groups and working groups, with the aim to improve cross-departmental collaboration mechanisms, and better respond to the needs of society and residents.
The Chief Executive answered questions raised by 31 Legislative Assembly members during Tuesday’s plenary session. Topics discussed included policy for the elderly and the young, support for disadvantaged groups, employment for local residents, social security, allocation of education resources, youth policy, use of public finance, promotion of community beautification, tourism development, preparation for the National Games, sports, medical policy, urban renewal, and public works.