The Chief Executive, Mr Ho Iat Seng, is leading a Macao Special Administrative Region (MSAR) Government delegation to Fuzhou City and Xiamen City in Fujian Province, from today until Friday (27 October), in a bid to strengthen cooperation and expand business opportunities. During the period, Mr Ho will attend a high-level meeting with officials of the Fujian Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), and the Fujian People’s Provincial Government, and attend the Macao-Fujian Cooperation Conference. Mr Ho and his delegation will visit projects on ‘Big Health’, technology, and urban planning in Fuzhou.

Later, Mr Ho will visit Xiamen and attend the opening ceremony of the “Macao Week in Fujian-Xiamen”, where a Macao entrepreneur delegation will attend a Xiamen-Macao business-matching and networking seminar.

Government officials accompanying Mr Ho to Fujian include: the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Lei Wai Nong; the Chief-of-Office of the Chief Executive's Office, Ms Hoi Lai Fong; and the Chief of Office of the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Ms Ku Mei Leng.

In 2014, the Fujian Government and the MSAR Government signed the "Memorandum on Deepening Cooperation between Fujian and Macao". Since then, they have from time-to-time held high-level meetings when deemed useful. In 2016, Fujian Province and Macao established the "Fujian-Macao Cooperation Conference" system. Through it, the two places work comprehensively to: deepen cooperation and jointly promote development of the "Belt and Road" initiative; expand the market opportunities of Portuguese-speaking countries; and deepen cooperation in relation to the convention and exhibition industry. They also work to strengthen exchanges and cooperation in cultural tourism, finance, and other fields.

During the Cooperation Conference, Secretary Lei will meet with member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Fujian Provincial Committee and Executive Vice Governor of Fujian Province, Ms Guo Ningning, and sign the fourth "Memorandum on Deepening Cooperation between Fujian and Macao".

While the Chief Executive is in Fujian, the Secretary for Administration and Justice, Mr Cheong Weng Chon, is Acting Chief Executive.