The Macau General Union of Neighbourhood Associations’ (UGAMM) service centre for the elderly at the Macau New Neighbourhood (MNN) in Hengqin is set to open for a trial run in the first half of this year.
The union, commonly known as Kai Fong in Cantonese, held a press conference yesterday on its premises in Toi San district regarding its 2023 annual review, during which Tian Yi, who heads the union’s office in Guangdong, said that the plan of the service centre for senior citizens in the Guangdong-Macau In-depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin has “basically” been finalised, which would be “essentially” the same as the services provided in Macau. He added that the service centre’s interior decoration is underway, expecting the trial operation to start in the first half of this year.
Local Chinese-language newspaper Macao Daily News quoted the union’s chairperson Ng Sio Lai as saying late last year that the service centre, occupying an area of about 8,000 square feet (740 square metres), would provide senior citizens with a canteen, cultural and recreational activities and related support services, which would be similar to the services provided by those in Macau.
According to Tian, the services to be provided by Hengqin’s centre will include recreational facilities, psychological counselling, and rehab services.
During yesterday’s press conference, Tian also briefed the media about his office’s highlights of this year’s work plan, including the launch of its Healthy Life Education Service for Children and cross-border schoolchildren transfer service at the Macau-Hengqin checkpoint on a trial basis, as well as the setting-up of its Hengqin Neighbourhood Association.
Meanwhile, according to the press conference, the number of times services were provided by the union’s Guangdong office rose to 263,312 last year, an increase of about 41,352 year-on-year. Tian said that his office has achieved “good” results in its service work in the past year, handling a total of 56 requests for assistance from Macau residents, and responding to more than 1,600 enquiries from Macau residents about various types of information.
By the end of last year, the office assisted 200 Macau residents in applying for reimbursement of Hengqin’s emergency medical consultation fees, the press conference noted.
Tian Yi, who heads the Macau General Union of Neighbourhood Associations’ (UGAMM) office in Guangdong, presents the 2023 annual review of the activities of his office during yesterday’s press conference at the union’s premises in Toi San district.
– Photo: Yuki Lei
