The Macao New Chinese Youth Association (MNCYA) hosted a press conference last Friday at its centre in the Macao Daily News Building on Avenida de Venceslau de Morais, where three representatives of the group presented their findings of a survey on youths’ views on Macau’s community economies, according to which 41.4 percent of the 769 local young adults surveyed commented positively on local communities’ economic development.
Community economic development is an inclusive and participatory process by which communities initiate and generate their own multiple bottom-line solutions to economic problems, according to Wikipedia.
According to a statement released last Friday by the association, the research project, funded by the Macao Foundation (FM), was carried out in November, during which a total of 769 valid questionnaires were collected from local residents aged between 18 and 44 based on random sampling, in order to identify areas of improvement for creating inclusive local economies, developing beneficial livelihood opportunities, and encouraging community resilience. The respondents were classified based on the parishes where they live.
During the press conference, the association’s representatives noted that 44.3 percent of the respondents said they believed their neighbourhoods have become more vibrant compared to 2018, thanks to the increased business opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) rooted in their own communities. By parish, more than half of the residents of Taipa (61.3 percent) and São Lázaro (52.4 percent) agreed that their livelihoods have been enriched as a result of economic development itself, while 81.4 percent of the residents of São Lourenço commented negatively on that matter. Meanwhile, 62.6 percent of the respondents said that they tended to shop in their respective neighbourhoods, indicating their willingness to support small businesses in their communities, according to the representatives.
Out of a scale ranging between 0.00 and 10.00, the findings show that the surveyed young adults rated the government’s efforts in promoting community economies as “overall satisfactory”, with the average of score of 5.52. Meanwhile, the statement noted a lack of understanding by 41.9 percent of the respondents about the government’s policies of community economic development planning.
Based upon the findings of the survey, the representatives suggested that the government utilise a more bottom-up planning approach integrating a multiplicity of voices through closer public-private collaboration. They said that the foundation of community planning should be supported by the presence of vigorous local institutions and enterprises that could engage stakeholders and tie their needs to their respective neighbourhood. Considering this, they highlighted the importance of youth participation for developing more robust community economies.
This handout photo provided by the Macao New Chinese Youth Association (MNCYA) shows its three representatives posing during last Friday’s press conference about a survey on Macau’s community economic development, at its centre on Avenida de Venceslau de Morais.
