Source: Macauhub

China’s Trade Ministry is focused on Macau’s role as a services platform for trade cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, Macau’s Chief executive Chui Sai On said Tuesday.

Taking stock of his visit to Beijing during which he presented the central government with proposals for the 13th five-year plan, Chui said had meetings at the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Ministry of Trade and the National Development and Reform Commission.

The Chief Executive said that during the next five-year plan Macau should continue its efforts to serve as a “platform for economic and trade cooperation services between China and the Portuguese-speaking countries” to move towards a “macro culture” consisting of integration of culture and innovation in various industries, so that this platform can bring together new elements in different areas and focus on its promotion.

Chui Sai On said Macau, as well as becoming a platform for services for trade cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, would increase its work to fulfil the aim of becoming an international tourism and leisure centre.

In the context of regional cooperation, along with Nansha, in Guangdong and Hengqin Island in Zhuhai, Chui said Macau had already delivered an official request to the central government to create, through cooperation with Zhongshan, a pilot area of general cooperation between Guangdong and Macau.

In addition, the Chief Executive also expressed the desire to get more support in other areas, including creation of a free trade zone in Guangdong, as well as through new supplements to Closer Economic Partnership Agreement on Commercial Relations between the Mainland and Macau (CEPA) and help for Macau’s small and medium enterprises in connection with liberalisation, reform and innovation of trade.

Chui also said that the State Administration for Traditional Chinese Medicine agreed, as part of diversification of the Macau economy and development of the traditional Chinese medicine industry, to support the system to set international standards, in order to integrate the benchmark laboratory, traditional medical centre and the Guangdong and Macau Scientific and Industrial Traditional Chinese Medicine Park, to move forward with development of traditional Chinese medicine in Macau.