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Ministers from member countries signing the Joint Declaration at the Extraordinary Ministerial Conference
Functioning as a platform Macao promotes exchange and co-operation between China and PSCs
Due to historical ties, Macao has forged close and extensive connections with nine PSCs (including Angola, Brazil, Cabo Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Portugal, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Timor-Leste) for many years, which have between them a population of 260 million in total, and plays the role as the Commercial and Trade Co-operation Service Platform between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries. In terms of economic co-operation, trade in products between Macao and Portuguese-speaking Countries exceeded MOP730 million in 2021, up by 21.2% compared to that of 2015.
“Three Centres” derived from “China-PSG Platform”
The first Ministerial Conference of the Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries was initiated by the Central Government and convened in Macao in October 2003. The Permanent Secretariat and a training centre of the Forum have also been established in Macao. To date, the Forum has been held five times. At the 4th Ministerial Meeting in 2013, the Central Government announced to support the establishment of the “Three Centres” in Macao, namely, a commercial and trade service centre for SMEs of China and PSCs; a food product distribution centre for PSCs; and a convention and exhibition centre for economic and trade co-operation between China and PSCs. Macao SAR Government continues to promote the development of “Three Centres” under the China-PSC platform to explore business opportunities through online and offline interaction.
In addition, the Extraordinary Ministerial Conference of the Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries was held both online and offline in Beijing and Macao in April 2022, with the main event venue set up at the Complex of Commerce and Trade Co-operation Platform for China and Portuguese-speaking Countries in Macao. At the Extraordinary Ministerial Conference, aside from the opening ceremony, various activities took place, including the inauguration ceremony of the Epidemic Prevention Exchange Centre for China and Portuguese-speaking Countries and the signing ceremony of the Joint Declaration. At the event, the Republic of Equatorial Guinea officially became the tenth member of the Macao Forum.
The China and Portuguese-speaking Countries Co-operation and Development Fund involves an investment totalling USD1 billion. The Macao headquarters for the Fund was established in June 2017 to provide enterprises from China and PSCs with assistance in developing collaboration regarding production capacity and infrastructure. As of the end of 2021, the Fund had forged investment projects in the sectors of agriculture, manufacturing, infrastructure and finance in different countries and regions such as Brazil, Mozambique, Angola and Macao.
Epidemic Prevention Exchange Centre for China and Portuguese-speaking Countries
The 5th Ministerial Conference of the Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries was held in Macao
IPIM carries out services for PSG markets
In recent years, Macao’s large MICE events have been enriched with increasing PSC elements. For example, since 2014, a PSCs exhibition zone has been set up at the “Macao International Trade and Investment Fair” (MIF). Since 2017, the Portuguese Speaking Countries Products and Services Exhibition (PLPEX) has turned into an independent MICE event and obtained the approval by the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI) in 2020. PLPEX has then been held concurrently with another two UFI approved MICE events, namely, MIF and Macao Franchise Expo (MFE). Through on-site exhibition, combined with live streaming, online exhibition halls and online promotion sessions, overseas visitors from PSCs and other countries can interact with other trade visitors through a variety of channels online even though they are not able to attend the event in Macao personally.
Officially inaugurated on 31 March 2016, the Portuguese-speaking Countries Food Products Exhibition Centre is an offline product display centre under the food product distribution centre for PSCs, which is one of the “Three Centres”. The goal is to promote PSC food and assist PSC food companies and products in extending their reach to Mainland China’s market. The exhibition centre covers an area of approximately 4,200 square feet and showcases food and beverage products from Portuguese-speaking Countries, all of which are either directly imported by PSC enterprises or distributed by companies from different regions. In 2021, the exhibition centre started to display non-food products from PSCs to promote, in a more comprehensively way, the high-quality products from PSCs to investors from all over the world.
Each product exhibited in the exhibition centre carries a unique QR code which directs customers to detailed information about the product, its producers and their contact details thereof from the database at the Economic & Trade Co-operation and Human Resources Portal between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (www.platformchinaplp.mo). With this information, customers may then proceed to arrange business meetings with the product suppliers. Some of the products can be purchased online and collected in Mainland China.
Personnel stationed at the exhibition centre also provide assistance in commercial meetings, matching, business exchange and other aspects, by providing bilingual information in Chinese and Portuguese at every stage to achieve business success. In addition, the centre will also invite local agencies which distribute PSC foods to hold promotional activities from time to time, and provides a venue for chambers of commerce and enterprises to launch their products and hold events in order to give more exposure to PSC food products and create more business opportunities.
Regarding the “China-PSC Business Compass”, from January and 19 July 2022, Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) provided the service 32 times to 23 users, involving areas such as meat, handicrafts, music instruments, building materials, garments, medical devices, timber, granulated sugar and soy trade. Meanwhile, to further expand the coverage of service, as 19 July 2022, IPIM has contacted a total of 146 organisations, including enterprises/trade organisations from the Mainland engaging in business with PSCs, as well as business and industrial organisations from PSCs, enabling IPIM to facilitate and hold online meetings with a total of eleven Mainland and PSC business organisations. Through the online meetings, IPIM introduced the attendees to the advantages of Macao’s role as a China-PSCs platform and IPIM’s lusophone market services. In the meantime, the meetings also allowed IPIM to understand the attendees’ needs for business development and to conduct follow-ups on an ongoing basis.
In the first half of 2022, IPIM has organised two Portuguese-speaking Countries and Macao Featured Products Sales Campaigns, which were promoted through various platforms such as WeChat, Facebook and the “Economic & Trade Cooperation and Human Resources Portal between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (the Portal)” to enhance the efficacy. In addition, IPIM will plan to organise “Portuguese-speaking Countries Product Promotion and Business Matching Sessions”in Shenzhen, Huizhou and Dongguan in the future to promote more food products and specialties from PSCs to enter the Mainland market, using the Greater Bay Area cities as entry points and better meeting the demand of Mainland consumers.
In the meantime, IPIM has organised online and offline investment promotion sessions to help enterprises explore the potential of China-PSC co-operation, and plans to organise the “Join Macao, Seize PSCs Opportunities’ Investor Presentation Session” in the future, inviting relevant departments such as the Economic Development Bureau of Hengqin at the Guangdong-Macao Intensive Co-operation Zone (Co-operation Zone), together with Macao’s financial and legal professions to publicise Macao’s advantages as a China-PSC co-operation platform and the market opportunities in the Co-operation Zone. Similar offline activities are planned to be held during the “Macao Week” in Changsha, Wuhan and Qingdao in the near future.
The Portuguese-speaking Countries and Macao Featured Products Sales Campaign is held at the Portuguese-speaking Countries Food Products Exhibition Centre
The elements of PSCs playing an increasingly important role in Macao’s major MICE events in recent years
