Macau’s road to recovery through its tourism industry exemplifies the power of solidarity between the private and public sectors, Secretary for Economy and Finance and Executive Chairman of the Global Tourism Economy Forum (GTEF) Lei Wai Nong said in his speech at the forum yesterday.
Lei delivered his speech during the one-day forum at MGM Macau.
Lei’s keynote speech entitled “Macau’s Success Story: Public Private Partnership for Tourism Economic Revival” pointed out that Macau has provided a case study for how the successful cooperation between the public and private sectors has spurred investments and mutual support during the COVID-19 pandemic. He added that as a “lynchpin” of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA) Macau has fostered high-quality development and its creative industries.
Lei said that in the mist of the COVID-19 pandemic, Macau has put in place new coordinated approaches between the private and public sectors, adding that Macau’s tourism sector has shown its resilience and innovation. In his speech, Lei highlighted the policies and strategies that Macau has put in place to aid the recovery of the tourism sector and how private and public partnerships have heightened corporate social responsibility (CSR), supported jobs, small-and-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the sustainable development of the community.
‘Unusual year’
Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Ao Ieong U said in her capacity as Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng’s official representative at the forum that this “unusual year” was facing new prospects and challenges, adding that countries and regions needed to unite to restore confidence in travel. She also said that based on the forum’s theme, “Solidarity and Innovation: Reshaping Tourism in the New Global Economy”, it was able to gather leaders from the public and private sectors as well as experts and professionals from around the world to share their foresights, unveil new thinking and create new opportunities for the march towards the global tourism recovery.
National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) Vice Chairman and GTEF Chairman Edmund Ho Hau Wah underlined in his speech during the opening ceremony that the forum is an international high-end platform to strengthen sustainable development and let people build an open-minded, accepting, inclusive and balanced world.
According to a statement by the Secretariat for Economy and Finance yesterday, the forum gathered tourism leaders from the public and private sectors as well as experts and scholars from different countries and regions to explore topics regarding “Solidarity and Innovation: Reshaping Tourism in the New Global Economy” in depth. The statement noted that the forum’s opening ceremony was attended by around 160 in-person guests and over 70 guests at a parallel venue in Hubei, adding that the ceremony also engaged an audience of 300,000 online from 51 countries and regions.
Vice-Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and Forum Chairman of the Global Tourism Economy Forum Edmund Ho Hau Wah (from left to right), Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Elsie Ao Ieong U and Secretary for Economy and Finance Lei Wai Nong address yesterday’s forum at MGM Macau.
Photos: Secretariat for Economy and Finance
