The Macau Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) said in a statement yesterday that the government-appointed Committee for the Development of Conventions and Exhibitions (CDCE) convened its First Plenary Ordinary Meeting of 2023 on Tuesday.
The statement noted that the meeting was chaired by CDCE Chairman-cum-Secretary for Economy and Finance Lei Wai Nong, who pointed out that the number of MICE activities in Macau increased by 10 percent in the first quarter year on year, while the number of participants and visitors grew by 20 percent.
MICE is an abbreviation for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions.
The statement underlined that various MICE events held in the first half of the year brought business visitors with “a higher spending power” to the city, benefiting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in various sectors, and leveraging the industry’s “boosting effect” to promote Macau’s appropriate economic diversification.
Meanwhile, CDCE Secretary General and IPIM President Vincent U U Sang said that according to the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC), 208 MICE events were held in the first quarter of this year, attended by nearly 200,000 participants.
The statement added that with the upcoming peak season for the sector, U noted that over 1,000 MICE events are expected to be held in the city this year. Moreover, Macau’s six integrated resort operators have progressively launched various leisure, cultural and MICE projects with a total investment exceeding 100 billion patacas.
The statement said that during the meeting the CDCE members concurred that Macau’s MICE industry has got off to a good start. The first half of the year, according to the statement, has witnessed continuous efforts in attracting business visitors with more spending power to attend MICE events in the city.
Moreover, based on the emerging Macau-Hengqin MICE collaboration, the local MICE sector is “fully confident in the Macau-Hengqin integration and development”, the statement noted, adding that the committee members believe that the local industry’s competitiveness could be increased by “wisely leveraging” the Hengqin MICE space in the future.
Along with the further implementation of the “MICE Bidding and Support Team” and MICE practitioners’ team building, among others, the MICE sector is also optimistic about its overall development prospects, having faith in achieving its development goals, the statement noted.
This handout photo provided by the Macau Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) yesterday shows CDCE Chairman-cum-Secretary for Economy and Finance Lei Wai Nong (left) addressing the government-appointed committee’s 1st Plenary Ordinary Meeting this year on Tuesday, as CDCE Secretary General-cum-IPIM President Vincent U U Sang looks on.
