Economic and Trade Co-operation Between China and The Portuguese-Speaking Countries

“Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries” was first held in 2003. Since then, the bilateral trade volume has increased annually by using Macao as a trade platform.

With the aim of further tapping potential economic and trade co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, making full use of the rich natural resources and consumer markets in Portuguese-speaking countries, further utilising Macao’s role as an economic and trade co-operation platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, and exploring Portuguese-speaking countries markets, Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM), with the Department of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation of Guangdong Provincial People’s Government, is organising a business delegation to visit Luanda, Angola on 17 July to attend the “Entrepreneurs Meeting for Commercial and Economic Co-operation between China and Portuguese Speaking Countries”, going on to South Africa and Mozambique after the meeting.

Highlighting Macao’s Role as a Trade and Economic Platform

Chang Hexi, Secretary-General of the Permanent Secretariat to the Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (Macao), indicates that in view of Macao’s role as a bridge and ties between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, speeding up to construct a trade and economic platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries has been put into the “12th Five-year Plan”. Macao is widely known, more influential, and more effective so he believes that measures and activities such as “Entrepreneurs Meeting for Commercial and Economic Co-operation between China and Portuguese Speaking Countries” will further promote bilateral economic and trade collaboration between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, and also enhance Macao’s role as a platform and bridge.

Chang Hexi states that Macao has unique and irreplaceable advantages that make it the perfect place to act as a platform for economic and trade co–operation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. Many specific measures and activities are gradually being implemented following the 3rd Ministerial Conference of China and Portuguese-speaking Countries Economic and Trade Co-operation Forum (Macao) held last year. Such as: a Personnel Training Centre set up in March this year; more than 30 people from seven Portuguese-speaking countries attended the first seminar on tourism and hotel management with a syllabus fitting in with Macao’s characteristics and requirements from Portuguese-speaking countries. The training centre has an important role to play in enhancing person interchanges and upgrading the standard of trade and economic co-operation between mainland China, Macao and Portuguese-speaking countries. The annual Entrepreneurs Meeting for Commercial and Economic Co-operation between China and Portuguese Speaking Countries will be held in Angola in July this year. The importance of the Meeting has been increasing as enterprises from participating countries place more emphasis on the Meeting.

According to Chang Hexi’s analysis, Macao’s role as a platform and bridge should be shown by specific co-operation projects among enterprises. “The Forum” acts as a bridge among entities, visits departments in charge of commerce and communicates with various entities, but the most important is letting enterprises connect with each other, mainly by organising events such as the Entrepreneurs Meeting, allowing entrepreneurs to understand investment policies, business environments and key projects in all Portuguese-speaking countries, and creates more opportunities for entrepreneurs to get to know collaboration partners, to hold business consultations and to implement projects. He has stated that Macao has already done a lot to create opportunities. As time goes by, Macao’s role as a platform will be greater.

Promoting Economic and Trade Co-operation

The “Entrepreneurs Meeting for Commercial and Economic Co-operation between China and Portuguese- speaking Countries” is a project for entrepreneurs business reciprocity within the framework of the “Co-operation Agreement of Trade Promotion Organisations/Chambers of Commerce” signed in Macao by relevant trade promotion organisations from China and Portuguese-speaking countries, namely Câmara de Comércio e Indústria de Angola (CCIA), Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (APEX-Brazil), Cape Verde Investment (CI), China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), Direcção de Promoção do Investimento Privado na Guiné-Bissau (DPIP), Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM), Mozambique’s Instituto Para a Promoção de Exportações (IPEX), Agência para o Investimento e Comércio Externo de Portugal (AICEP) Tradeinvest Timor Leste during “the China and Portuguese-speaking Countries Economic and Trade Co-operation Forum” (Macao) in October 2003, which is held in different participating countries and regions by local trade promotion organisations each year. The Meeting was held in Angola, Portugal, Mozambique, Cape Verde and Brazil for six times from 2005 to 2010, attended by 2,690 enterprises from China and Portuguese-speaking countries.

This year’s Meeting will be organised by Câmara de Comércio e Indústria de Angola, with events like briefings, workshops, business matching and exhibitions. It is hoped that through these events collaboration with Portuguese-speaking countries and regions can be enhanced, new partnership projects can be found and bilateral economic and trade communications strengthened. Apart from attending this Meeting, Macao’s business delegation will also attend the joint promotional activities held by Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) and the Department of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation of Guangdong Province in Cape Town, South Africa and Maputo, Mozambique.

The training centre has an important role to play in enhancing personnel interchanges and upgrading the standard of trade and economic co-operation between mainland China, Macao and Portuguese-speaking countries.

Increasingly Effective

Macao Image also interviewed Rita Botelho dos Santos, Deputy Secretary-General of the Permanent Secretariat to the Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (Macao) (Representative of the Macao SAR Government) and Head of Supporting Office to the Permanent Secretariat to the Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (Macao). She says that the Forum not only promotes the growth of trade volumes, but also plays a role various areas. First of all, Portuguese entrepreneurs attach great importance to preferential policies brought about by CEPA. Many enterprises have already invested and established factories in Zhuhai-Macao Cross-border Industrial Zone, and exported products to the mainland under the framework of CEPA; Secondly, Chinese enterprises invest in diverse projects in Portuguese-speaking countries via the Forum. In Portuguese-speaking countries like Angola, East Timor, Guinea Bissau and Mozambique, Chinese enterprises are going to or have invested in industries involved in animal husbandry, mining, hotels, telecommunications and motorcycles. It has provided more space for Chinese enterprises to “go global”; what is more, Macao enterprises have set up investment funds or trading companies in Portuguese-speaking countries markets. This provides a new way for Macao SMEs to expand their business and for Macao to promote another level of appropriate economic diversification.

Rita Botelho dos Santos also indicates that with the effort put in over the years, economic and trade co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries is strengthening and expanding. There are more and more Portuguese and Brazilian restaurants in Macao. The China-Portuguese-Speaking Countries Culture Week held in Macao in 2008 also added new elements to Macao’s tourism industry and appropriate economic diversification. One can see that cuisines, arts, economic and trade co-operation have been integrated. People working for the Forum are greatly encouraged by these developments.

Rita Botelho dos Santos says, “The Government, economic and trade organisations and local entrepreneurs from Angola attach great importance to this year’s Forum. This would be the second time Angola has held this event. A large exhibition is planned to showcase Angola’s diverse investment projects.”

Rita Botelho dos Santos believes that there are business opportunities everywhere in Angola as the political situation is now stable. Angola has set up a Consulate-General in Macao and sent representatives to the Permanent Secretariat of the China and Portuguese-Speaking Countries Economic and Trade Co-operation Forum. Guangdong province, especially the Pearl River Delta, is close to Macao which allows for a free flow of information. Business associations and enterprises from Guangdong and Macao are very familiar with Angola’s investment environment. It is believed that, with the organisational work done by Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) and the Department of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation of Guangdong, Meeting participants will surely find business opportunities.