Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Cheong U, said yesterday that the signing of the Framework Agreement on Guangdong/Macau Co-operation last Sunday was all good news for the SAR.
It brings more opportunities and the possibility for the sustained development of the territory, he added, according to a statement released by the Government Information Bureau.
Cheong U said also that the agreement will be useful to boost Macau as an international centre for tourism and leisure, as well as help to push forward the diversification of the local economy and play an important role in promoting the closer cooperation between the two places.
According to the 2011 work plan based on the pact, a coordination mechanism between the two places will be established to propose policies and suggestions for major construction projects on Hengqin including the University of Macau s new campus and the five-square kilometre Guangdong/Macau cooperation industrial zone.
A liaison committee for the development of Hengqin is also set to be formed.
Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On said on Sunday that the Chinese Medicine Science and Technology Industrial Park will first be built in the Guangdong/Macau cooperation industrial zone, and afterwards it will gradually be extended to the areas of cultural and creative and tourism industries.
The idea is supported by Cheong U who believes that Hengqin Island offers better conditions and opportunities for the development of local creative industries.
Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a public event, Cheong reaffirmed also that the Government will consider Macau first if it decides to build new elderly homes. Guangdong would only be a complementary solution, he stressed.
The Social Welfare Bureau will be in charge of drafting new plans, and several areas in new constructions of public housing will be reserved for different social facilities, he added.
