Macao will host – from 9 to 11 November – the International Science, Technology and Innovation Forum (ISTIF), a new conference under the Boao Forum for Asia framework.

The first edition of ISTIF takes as its theme the idea that “Innovation Empowers Sustainable Development”. The event is being co-organised by the Boao Forum for Asia and the Government of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR).

During the three-day event, there will be a total of 12 sub-forum sessions, where approximately 800 guests and experts will share their insights on science, technology and innovation. Dignitaries from some overseas countries, governmental representatives from Portuguese-speaking countries and representatives of international organisations will make contributions – via online format – to ISTIF. Representatives of the Chinese Government and of the Macao SAR Government, respectively, as well as experts and entrepreneurs, will be in Macao for the event.

Details of the conference were announced today by the Secretary-General of the Boao Forum for Asia, Mr Li Baodong, during a press conference held in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province.

He said that – by making use of the Boao Forum for Asia’s strengths in creating cross-cultural, cross-subject and cross-sectoral exchanges – ISTIF aimed to be a fresh, comprehensive and high-level platform for dialogue between people from political, business and academic fields, enabling the exchange of views on the latest developments regarding science, technology and innovation issues.

The first edition of ISTIF would focus on three major issues: impetus for innovation; innovation and everyday life; and cooperation on innovation, Mr Li said. ISTIF aimed to advance technological development and technological innovation, and to promote linkage of those achievements with economic production and use in daily life, he added.

Also speaking in the Guangzhou press conference was the Director General of the Economic Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao SAR, Mr Chen Guokai. Via Macao’s bridging roles, ISTIF was set to bolster international cooperation and exchanges in science, technology and innovation, and to advance the effort to transform research into practical production, Mr Chen said. These steps would contribute to the overall development of science, technology and innovation within Asia, and even across the rest of the world, he added.

During the press conference, the Executive Chairman of the Presidium for the first ISTIF, Mr Leong Vai Tac, stated that holding ISTIF in Macao – a city dedicated to facilitating regional exchange and cooperation, and to enhancing its activity as a  platform – would create fresh opportunities and a hub for international collaboration. It was also a step conducive to the task of developing the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area into an influential international centre of science, technology and innovation, and to complement Macao’s overall effort towards the city’s adequate economic diversification.

Mr Leong said he was confident that ISTIF would help boost insights and make a fresh contribution to economic recovery and sustainable development across the globe.

The first International Science, Technology and Innovation Conference is headed by Deputy Chairman of the 13th Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference Mr Ho Hau Wah. It also has support from a number of departments and committees of the Central Government, including: the Ministry of Science and Technology; the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology; the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council; the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao SAR; and the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China in the Macao SAR.

International bodies taking part in the conference will include the World Intellectual Property Organization and the International Telecommunication Union.