The Entrepreneurs' Conference, one of the supporting activities of the 6th Ministerial Conference of the Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (Macao), was successfully held today (23 October). Nearly 700 leaders and representatives of governments, trade promotion agencies, business associations and enterprises from Chinese mainland, nine Portuguese-speaking countries, Hong Kong and Macao attended the event, including China's top 500 enterprises, enterprises from Portuguese-speaking countries leading the world in pulp production, and representatives of enterprises in the "1+4" sector. Among the guests were a number of Deputy Prime Ministers and ministerial-level officials.
The theme of the "Entrepreneur Conference" is "Promoting the New Trend of Digital Transformation and Sharing New Opportunities for Green Development". Speaking at the meeting, the Vice Minister of Commerce of the People's Republic of China, Guo Tingting, said that Macao has actively built a high-level and comprehensive service platform for commercial and trade co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, and has played an active role in economic and trade exchanges, business services, conferences and exhibitions, cultural exhibitions and talent training between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. At present, the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin are being further promoted, bringing more new opportunities for economic and trade cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. The Ministry of Commerce will support Macao in continuing to play its role as a "connector" between China and Portuguese-speaking countries.
The "1+4" industry development will be for Chinese and Portuguese enterprises
Provide more development opportunities
The Secretary for Economy and Finance of the Macao SAR Government, Lei Wai Nong, said that the "Entrepreneurs' Conference" is an important event during the Ministerial Conference of Forum Macao, and hoped that elites from all parties would share their insights, explore new models of cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, promote the continuous optimization and upgrading of industrial and supply chains through scientific and technological innovation, and contribute to the high-quality development of economic and trade cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. At the same time, Macao's efforts to promote the development of the "1+4" industry will provide more development opportunities for Chinese and Portuguese-speaking enterprises, and since the beginning of this year, the construction of the In-depth Cooperation Zone has been further accelerated, which will create more favorable conditions for the development of the China-Portuguese-speaking Countries International Trade Centre in the In-depth Cooperation Zone, and the new model of Macao-Qinqin linkage development of "Macao platform + international resources + Hengqin space + achievement sharing" will also be further revealed.
Zhang Shaogang, Vice President of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said that the business communities of China and Portuguese-speaking countries have achieved substantial results in the fields of infrastructure, clean energy, finance and insurance, and medical and health care, in the spirit of "extensive consultation, cooperation, joint construction of platforms and shared development". In the future, the two sides can deepen co-operation in three directions: as the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Hengqin In-depth Cooperation Zone continues to accelerate, the business community of Portuguese-speaking countries can deepen their connection with the Chinese mainland market through Macao's platform; the two sides strengthen exchanges in emerging fields such as digital transformation and green economy to lead the new trend of industrial cooperation; and give full play to the role of trade promotion institutions to create a new platform for practical cooperation. The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) will hold the 2nd China International Supply Chain Promotion Expo in Beijing in November this year to promote the optimization and upgrading of industrial and supply chains between China and Portuguese-speaking countries.
Francisco Tadeu Barbosa de Alencar, Deputy Minister of Entrepreneurship, Micro and Small Enterprises of the Federative Republic of Brazil, said that China and Brazil are important economic and commercial partners. He hopes to make use of the China-PSC platform to enable small enterprises to participate more in digital transformation and make more contributions to basic innovation, employment and production. Macao has a huge advantage in facilitating the entry of companies from Portuguese-speaking countries into China, and Portuguese-speaking countries can also take advantage of their advantages to seek more opportunities.
The two thematic seminars brought together a large number of people
Heavyweight speakers gave their opinions
The two seminars invited a number of distinguished speakers, including representatives of China's top 500 enterprises, trade promotion agencies, chambers of commerce or enterprises from nine Portuguese-speaking countries, as well as representatives of business associations and well-known enterprises covering finance, high-tech, commerce and environmental protection in Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macao, to share their insights on the topics of "accelerating digital transformation and unleashing new momentum for industrial development" and "promoting green economy for a sustainable future".
Participants shared their experience in digitalisation and the risks they may face in trade, as well as the challenges faced by traditional industries in areas with large urban-rural differences, and pointed out that the conference can help Chinese mainland, Portuguese-speaking countries and Macao to establish co-operation to improve the output, quality and efficiency of production, as well as enhance trade flow and unleash new momentum for development.
A number of guests also expressed that in terms of green development in the future, they can be in line with the "1+4" diversified development proposed by Macao, continue to enhance the development of new technologies, and better play Macao's role as a platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, so as to promote global emission reduction and green and sustainable development.
Press kit and photo source: Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute