Prisca Tang
The Macau Government Tourism Office’s (MGTO) representative office in the United States was bestowed with a PATA (Pacific Asia Travel Association) Grand Award, while three local tourism operators received a PATA Gold Award each for initiatives in different areas–marketing, sustainability and social responsibility, MGTO said in a statement yesterday.
The list of this year’s PATA Gold Awards winners was announced in an online live ceremony yesterday.
According to the statement, one of the two top awards – the PATA Grand Award in Marketing— went to the MGTO representative office in the United States for its initiative “Dream Now and Travel Later”. The statement pointed out that the initiative was launched in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as an integrated campaign series that tapped into the power of social media to provide a string of educational and dynamic contents about Macau, aiming to inspire consumers to “dream now and travel [to Macau] later”.
The statement said that Melco Resorts & Entertainment was awarded a PATA Gold Award in the category of Climate Change Initiatives for its “Above & Beyond – Melco’s Sustainability Strategy”, which aimed to help the tourism operator achieve carbon neutrality and zero waste across its resorts by 2030.
Moreover, the statement pointed out that the “MGM Youth Empowerment and Engagement Initiative” started by MGM China received a PATA Gold Award in the category of Youth Empowerment Initiative. The statement said that the initiative created learning opportunities for Macau’s youth and young professionals within the company and in the community.
MGM expressed its gratitude for being recognised by PATA for the third time. MGM underlined its dedication to local youth development in the statement, which it said aligns with Macau’s “Tourism+” initiatives, as well as supporting the city’s positioning such as the Creative City of Gastronomy, World Centre of Tourism and Leisure and Tourism Training Hub for the Greater Bay Area.
Meanwhile, the MGTO statement pointed out that Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG) received a PATA Gold Award for Culture (Traditional Performance and Visual Arts) with its initiative “Promoting Cultural Tourism through our Foundation” that emphasises local arts and cultural development in order to cultivate the next generation’s interest in exhibitions, the arts and cultural traditions.
GEG reaffirmed in a statement yesterday that it endeavours to help foster Macau’s development as a World Centre of Tourism and Leisure by committing to the sustainable development of Macau’s various industries and supporting different cultural, arts, recreation and sports initiatives. The statement also said that GEG has been actively supporting and participating in many large-scale arts, cultural, recreation and sports activities organised by the Macau government and helping Macau become a base for exchanges and cooperation where Chinese culture is the mainstream and diverse cultures coexist. (The full GEG statement is available on our website: https://www.macaupostdaily.com/article11905.html)
This handout photo provided by the Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) shows its director, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, welcoming participants in yesterday’s PATA Gold Awards 2021 virtual ceremony.
