The first Shanghai-Macao Cooperation Conference which was held on Friday was set up to allow for high-level cooperation and dialogue between the two cities. Macao and Shanghai signed five agreements among them a framework agreement on strengthening exchanges and cooperation in key areas of the digital economy, smart city development, and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
According to a Macao government statement, “it was a crucial opportunity for Macao and Shanghai to step up efforts to deepen exchanges across a broad range of sectors.”
Macao Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng and Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng co-chaired the conference. Ho described Shanghai’s achievements in economic and trade matters, finance and manufacturing, and its advances in urban construction and management as a reference point for Macao.
Ho also noted that Macao and Shanghai enjoy good prospects for wide cooperation in fields such as financial services, traditional Chinese medicine, and scientific and technological innovation.
He underlined that Macao aims to develop modern financial services and said that the two sides could work together to train financial professionals and promote the presence of bond-issuing institutions from Shanghai in Macao.
Ho also suggested that Macao and Shanghai step up efforts to promote traditional Chinese medicine and said that Macao’s role as a “bridgehead” could help introduce quality Chinese medicines from the mainland to Portuguese-speaking countries and the European Union, as well as countries and regions covered by the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Addressing the conference, Mayor Gong listed two aspirations for bilateral cooperation:
The first to explore together the opportunities arising from the Belt and Road Initiative, the Yangtze River Delta Regional Integrated Development Initiative, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area; and the second to implement initiatives outlined in the cooperation proposal during the conference, and the agreements signed on its sidelines that cover a host of economic and professional fields.
Ho and his delegation arrived in Shanghai on Thursday for a four-day working visit, which coincides with the “Shanghai Macao Week” roadshow organised by the Macao Government Tourism Office which aims to promote Macao as a “safe and quality travel destination” during the Covid-19 pandemic.
