Hosted by the Economic and Technological Development Bureau of the Macao SAR Government (DSEDT) and oganized by Parafuturo de Macau Investment and Development Limited, the “Delegation of Technology Enterprises from Portuguese-speaking Countries to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area” began its visit on May 10. With Macao serving as the first stop, the delegation visited the Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (Macao), as well as local incubation institutions, scientific research units of tertiary institutions, and legal enterprises over the course of the three-day trip. They also listened to the DSEDT’s introduction of the Centre for Science and Technology Exchange and Cooperation between China and Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CSTCP) to better comprehend how sci-tech industries in Hengqin and Macao have developed.

The delegation consists of five incubation institutions from Brazil and Portugal, as well as ten awardees from previous “Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition (Macao) for Technology Enterprises from Brazil and Portugal” and/or Brazilian and Portuguese technology enterprises which are interested in developing their business in China. The delegation set out on its journey at Macao Young Entrepreneur Incubation Centre (MYEIC) on May 10, allowing its members to learn about the MYEIC as the first filed national co-working space overseas and the positioning of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Centre for Young Entrepreneurs in China and Portuguese-speaking Countries as the SAR Government’s key platform for supporting the youth in integrating into the development of the Greater Bay Area and promoting Sino-Lusophone exchanges between young people in innovation and entrepreneurship. Afterwards, as arranged by the organizer, the head of the local MdME Lawyers gave a presentation to the members of the delegation on the tax laws and policies that Macao and Hengqin have put in place for the convenience of sci-tech talents from Portuguese-speaking countries to establish and operate a business in the two places. This was received by the members of the delegation who had great interest in tax reduction and exemption of corporate income tax.

Under the arrangement of the DSEDT, the delegation held an exhibition and roadshow at the BEYOND International Science and Technology Innovation Expo 2023 from May 10 to 11. Subsequently, on May 12, the delegation received a warm reception from Acting Head of Technology Industry Promotion Division of the DSEDT while visiting the CSTCP to learn about its founding principle. During the visit, the delegation got to better understand the scientific research, market, and policy advantages of Macao, Hengqin, and Zhuhai and expressed their willingness to actively explore the development opportunities of the Greater Bay Area through the platform of Macao.

Teresa Mok, Coordinator from the Support Office of the Permanent Secretariat of the Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (Macao), welcomed the delegation and introduced the Permanent Secretariat’s efforts in trade and investment promotion, cooperation in human resources, cultural exchanges between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, and the features of Macao’s role as the Commercial and Trade Co-operation Service Platform between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries. Later, the delegation visited the Pavilion of China-Portuguese-speaking Countries Commercial and Trade Service Platform and gained a more thorough and three-dimensional grasp of the platform’s significance.

Accompanied by Rui Paulo da Silva Martins and Claudia Jian XU, Vice-Rectors of the University of Macau (UM), the delegation visited three state key laboratories including the State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, State Key Laboratory of Analog and Mixed-Signal VLSI, and State Key Laboratory of Internet of Things for Smart City as well as innovation and entrepreneurship centers. The members exchanged ideas with the persons in charge and expressed appreciation for UM’s scientific research standards and industrial transformation of achievements, and they are looking forward to the opportunity to cooperate with Macao’s scientific institutions.

During this period, Key2Enable and Virtuleap, technology enterprises from Brazil and Portugal respectively, dealt with the formalities for establishing a base at the Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute. Key2Enable aims to empower disabled people with better learning quality and living standards through its multifunctional keyboard. Virtuleap engages in the combination of virtual reality (VR) with artificial intelligence (AI) technology to provide assessment and training for the diagnosis and treatment of heart and brain diseases.

After the trip to Macao, the delegation is going to visit the mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area today (13^th) as well as the scientific research bases, scientific and technological innovation industrial parks, incubation institutions, and well-known enterprises in the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, Guangzhou, and Zhuhai to assist enterprises from Brazil and Portugal in exploring the market of the Greater Bay Area and thus promote the mobility and the connectivity of industrial resources between China and Portuguese-speaking countries by leveraging the role of the Sino-Lusophone platform.