Chief Executive of Macao Special Administrative Region Ho Iat Seng delivers his Lunar New Year message for the Year of the Dragon on Feb 9, 2024. (PHOTO / MACAO SAR GOVT)

HONG KONG/MACAO – The chief executive of the Macao Special Administrative Region on Friday stressed the need to make proactive moves to realize substantial progress in appropriate economic diversification in the Year of the Dragon.

In his message for the Lunar New Year, Ho Iat Seng said the past Year of the Rabbit witnessed Macao's recovery from the pandemic and its robust development.

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The Macao SAR government will continue to unite its residents in implementing the aspirations communicated through a series of important speeches by President Xi Jinping and the strategic deployment of the report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, he said. 

Looking ahead towards the new year, we are committed to upholding national security and fostering greater patriotism and love for Macao.

Ho Iat Seng, Chief Executive, Macao SAR

“We will follow unwaveringly through with the ‘one country, two systems” principle, ‘Macao people governing Macao’ and a high degree of autonomy, as well as the principle of ‘patriots governing Macao’,” he said.

Looking ahead to the new year, the CE said the city will prioritize the growth of the Cooperation Zone and meet the phased goals laid out in the Master Plan of the Development of the Guangdong-Macao Intensive Cooperation Zone in Hengqin at a faster pace. 

More efforts will also be made to conduct external exchange so that Macao can integrate itself better into the overall national development, he added.

“I firmly believe that Macao will be catapulted to a vigorous new year with a dragon-like verve under the aegis of the country and the collective efforts made by its residents to take on a whole new look and scale more heights!”

Zheng Xincong, director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the SAR, said on Friday that this year marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the 25th anniversary of Macao's return to the motherland.

He expressed his hope that Macao would better integrate into the country's overall development, give full play to its unique advantages, and further promote exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations.

Zheng also wished Macao compatriots better well-being.

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Liu Xianfa, commissioner of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Macao SAR, said in his New Year message that in the past year, the SAR's chief executive and government have united and led all sectors of society, achieving remarkable results in promoting the development of various undertakings.

In the new year, Liu said, the foreign affairs office will fully support Macao to govern according to law, actively help the SAR expand foreign exchanges and cooperation, firmly shoulder the responsibility of "diplomacy for the people" and "diplomacy for Macao," and earnestly implement the purpose of serving the SAR.