The government yesterday launched a 45-day public consultation on the strategies and major infrastructure projects required to develop Macau into a smart city, aiming to build Macau into a sustainable smart city and world city of leisure and tourism.
A press conference about the public consultation was held on the premises of the Government Information Bureau (GCS) at China Plaza. The consultation will end on June 30. Two public sessions will be held during the consultation period.
The government in 2016 announced its Five-Year Development Plan (2016-2020), the city’s first ever five-year development plan, which looks at enhancing the city’s sustainable development featuring “Smart Tourism”, “Smart Transportation”, “Smart Healthcare” and “Smart Government”.
Last August, the government signed a framework agreement with Alibaba Group to develop Macau into a smart city, by using Alibaba’s big data processing capabilities to improve the city’s public services.
The public consultation document highlights 13 major development categories, including efficient energy use, green environment, as well as open government and transparent decision-making.
The document available in Chinese and Portuguese includes a string of suggestions such as the updating of Macau’s laws and regulations required to meet its development needs.
When asked by the media which existing laws and regulations are preventing Macau from becoming a smart city, Chan Wan Hei, a member of the Administrative Council of the Science and Technology Development Fund (FDCT), said that in order to carry out the suggested development plans, the government needed to adjust the city’s laws and regulations.
Chan gave the example of installing smart gas and electricity meters that can digitally send their readings to energy suppliers for more accurate energy bills, and would also enable customers to better understand their energy consumption. He said that a smart meter requires the use of radio frequencies (RF), but there would be a fee for using such frequencies. He said that the details such as who will pay the fee, needed to be defined by related laws and regulations.
The consultation document doesn’t specify which laws and regulations should be amended in order to get the development plan off the ground.
When asked by the media which government body would head the smart city development plan, Chan noted that every government entity has got a different role. He said that, for instance, in order to alleviate traffic congestion it would take several government bodies to work together, such as the Public Security Police (PSP), Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) and Macau Post and Telecommunication Bureau (CTT), adding that “[to build] a smart city is not a task for a single government body”.
He said that the public consultation document could only point out the goals, not every detailed task to be carried out.
Chan Wan Hei, a member the Administrative Council of the Science and Technology Development Fund (FDCT), speaks about the government’s smart city public consultation at the Government Information Bureau (GCS) in Nam Van yesterday. Photo: Joel Chu
