The secretary-general of the Permanent Secretariat of the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and the Portuguese-speaking Countries (Macau), Xu Yingzhen, ended her secondment from the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) to Macau and returned Beijing on Sunday, the secretariat said in a statement yesterday.
Informally, the entity overseen by the ministry in Beijing is known as “Macau Forum”.
The statement pointed out that Xu, who was posted to Macau in July 2016, presided over a string of “highly important” events within the ambit of the Macau Forum, such as its 5th Ministerial Conference and the 15th anniversary of the setting-up of forum. Xu also “participated earnestly” in the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR).
The statement also said that during her posting to Macau Xu totally dedicated herself to promoting economic and trade relations between China and the Portuguese-speaking countries and assisted in developing Macau as a platform for business cooperation between the two sides.
Before returning to Beijing, Xu paid farewell visits to senior officials of the Central People’s Government Liaison Office and local government as well as diplomats from the Portuguese-speaking countries based in Macau, the statement noted.
Xu is a senior MOC official.
Sources close to the Macau Forum contacted by The Macau Post Daily last night praised Xu for her hard work, personal dedication and professional commitment to advancing Macau’s position as a business service hub between China and the Portuguese-speaking world (Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, São Tomé and Príncipe, and East Timor (Timor Leste).
Even though Portuguese has been one of the three official languages of Equatorial Guinea alongside Spanish and French since 2010, the country on the west coast of Central Africa is not yet a member of the Macau Forum.
Central People’s Government Liaison Office in Macau Fu Ziying (right) and Xu Yingzhen, then secretary-general of the Permanent Secretariat of the Macau Forum, pose in this undated handout photo provided by the secretariat yesterday. Fu is the highest-ranking central government official posted to Macau.
