CE meets Secretary of CPC Hainan Provincial Committee

MACAU, March 26 - The Chief Executive, Mr Sam Hou Fai, today met with the Secretary of the Hainan Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Hainan Provincial People’s Congress, Mr Feng Fei. Both sides had an in-depth exchange on Hainan and Macao further expanding cooperation in various fields.

The Chief Executive has been invited to Hainan Province for the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2025 opening plenary, being held in the morning on Thursday (27 March).

At today’s meeting, Mr Sam expressed his gratitude for the warm hospitality extended to him on his visit. He stated that this year was a crucial one for the sixth-term Macao Special Administrative Region (MSAR) Government, as well as marking the start of the second phase of the Guangdong-Macao Intensive Cooperation Zone in Hengqin. He was pleased to see, in the meantime, good progress in development of the Hainan Free Trade Port.

Hainan and Macao have a good cooperation mechanism in areas such as tourism, healthcare, and education, and the Cooperation Zone and Hainan share great similarities in terms of policy relating to free trade development, Mr Sam said. Looking ahead, the two sides could work more closely to leverage their unique advantages, and expand exchanges and cooperation, each complementing the other's development on the broad stage of the country's development.

The MSAR Government was thoroughly implementing the important speeches and instructions given by President Xi Jinping during his latest inspection of Macao. The MSAR would unswervingly accelerate the promotion of appropriate economic diversification, and fully promote the high-quality development of social and economic elements. Mr Sam said he looked forward to more development opportunities for Hainan and Macao through pragmatic cooperation.

Speaking in today’s meeting, Secretary Feng welcomed Mr Sam to Hainan Province for the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2025, and briefed him on Hainan’s latest economic developments, and its progress in promoting the construction of the Hainan Free Trade Port.

The Hainan Free Trade Port has implemented ‘closed-loop’ customs operations this year, and there have been a number of successful experiences for Hainan from which the Cooperation Zone could learn. In the meantime, Hainan would continue to follow closely the latest developments in the Cooperation Zone, said Secretary Feng.

In addition, Hainan and Macao shared similarities in the structure of their respective economies, with a relatively large weighting toward the tourism industry. He hoped there would be further deepening of cooperation between the two sides, as well as enhanced interactions, in order to open a new chapter in multi-field cooperation between the two places.

Other members of the Government delegation attending the meeting were: the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the MSAR, Mr Liu Xianfa; the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Tai Kin Ip; and the Chief-of-Office of the Chief Executive’s Office, Ms Chan Kak.

Those present also included: Deputy Secretary of the CPC Hainan Provincial Committee and Governor of Hainan, Mr Liu Xiaoming; member and Secretary-General of the Standing Committee of the CPC Hainan Provincial Committee and Director of the Office of the Hainan Free Trade Port Working Committee, Mr Ni Qiang; and Executive Deputy Director of the United Front Work Department of the CPC Hainan Provincial Committee, Mr Kang Baiying.

After arriving in Hainan today, Mr Sam visited the Haikou International Duty-Free City to learn about its operating conditions and development direction. In the evening, he attended a Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2025 welcoming banquet.