The government held a meeting on Friday to brief association representatives on Macau’s 3rd Five-Year Plan regarding its social affairs and culture portfolio, during which Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Wallis O Lam said that her portfolio will place a strong emphasis on advancing the construction of two large-scale projects: the Macao-Hengqin International Education (University) Town and the Macao International Integrated Tourism and Cultural Zone.
The meeting, which was attended by about 60 association representatives, was held at the Service Platform Complex for Commercial and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (aka Forum Macao Complex) in Sai Van.
The meeting was open to the media when O Lam delivered her opening speech and officials under her portfolio gave presentations on the 3rd Five-Year Plan regarding the government’s social affairs and culture portfolio. Afterwards, the meeting was held behind closed doors while attendees gave their opinions and officials answered their questions.
The Macau government announced and published the final version of the 3rd Five-Year Plan last month.
The Macao Special Administrative Region’s (MSAR) 3rd Five-Year Plan, officially known as the 3rd Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development, covers the period between 2026 and 2030.
Delivering her speech, O Lam noted that the 3rd Five-Year Plan is a programmatic document and a master blueprint guiding the MSAR’s development over the next five years, fully aligning with the nation’s 15th Five-Year Plan while directly bearing on residents’ well-being and Macau’s long-term prosperity and stability.
O Lam said that her portfolio will place a strong emphasis on launching initiatives to ensure the effective implementation of the 3rd Five-Year Plan’s tasks and goals in her portfolio, pledging her commitment to turning the blueprint into tangible, concrete benefits for the public, thereby enhancing residents’ sense of fulfilment, happiness, and security.
O Lam also said that her portfolio will place a strong emphasis on advancing the construction of the Macao-Hengqin International Education (University) Town in Hengqin to expand the development space for Macau’s higher education, creating a virtuous cycle underpinned by education, empowered by technology, and supported by talent.
The university town’s first phase, which started operating last month, consists of transitional teaching and research facilities in Hengqin used by three Macau public universities – namely the University of Macau (UM), the Macao Polytechnic University (MPU), and the Macao University of Tourism (UTM) – before the completion of their respective new campuses in Hengqin.
Dezhi Plaza (德智廣場) in Hengqin, a property development project consisting of about a dozen high-rise and low-rise buildings, was initially slated to operate as a “German City” commercial complex, but it has been converted into the university town’s first phase.
Since its operational start last month, the converted Dezhi (“Virtue and Wisdom”) Plaza has been shared by UM, MPU, and UTM for the operation of their respective transitional teaching and research facilities.
The university town’s second phase is UM’s new campus in Hengqin, the partial and full operation of which is slated for 2028 and 2029, respectively, while the third phase consists of the new campuses of MPU and UTM in Hengqin, construction of which is slated to start in 2027 and be completed in 2030.
O Lam said in her speech that the university town is being developed through an extended campus model, extending Macau’s higher education to Hengqin, with the integrated development of “one university, two campuses” as its goal. At the same time, she said, the university town aims to achieve internationalisation in talent cultivation, scientific research, and sci-tech exchange.
O Lam also said that her portfolio will also place a strong emphasis on advancing the construction of the Macao International Integrated Tourism and Cultural Zone, which will be built into a new urban cultural landmark and a new engine for Macau’s development.
O Lam noted that the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) held a press conference on Thursday to announce its ongoing preparatory work for the design and construction of the Macao National Museum of Culture – one of the three major cultural facilities for the Macao International Integrated Tourism and Cultural Zone.
O Lam noted that the government is aiming to complete the construction of the first phase of the Macao National Museum of Culture – which will be located in the waterfront area east of Macau Tower – and open it in 2029.
O Lam underlined that her portfolio is also vigorously addressing the challenges brought to Macau’s socioeconomic development by declining birth rates and an ageing population. Adhering to a people-centred approach, O Lam pledged the government’s commitment to thoroughly and effectively carrying out its tasks concerning residents’ daily lives, so as to safeguard residents’ physical and mental health and raise their quality of life.
Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Wallis O Lam addresses Friday’s meeting with association representatives about Macau’s 3rd Five-Year Plan at the Forum Macao Complex near Macau Tower. – Photo: GCS
