A press conference hosted by the Research Centre for Macau Social and Economic Development, Ministry of Education Key Research Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences at Universities, and sponsored by the Macao Foundation on the “Research on the Governance System and Governance Capacity Modernization of Macao Special Administrative Region” has been held.

Led by Director, Ip Kuai Peng, the Pro-Rector in charge of research, the research team, which comprised Wang Xin, Li Hongjiang and Lin Deqin,Program Coordinators, Sheng Jian, Director Research Management Office, and Chen Peiyi and Xiao Mingyu, researchers, attended the press conference.

Ip Kuai Peng pointed out that at the Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, President Xi Jinping put forward the strategic layout of the country, sending an important signal of the future development direction of China. As the Macao Special Administrative Region is an important part of the overall development plan of the country, improving the governance of the SAR is critical to the modernization of the governance system and governance capacity of the country. According to Ip Kuai Peng, the report “Research on the Governance System and Governance Capacity Modernization of Macao Special Administrative Region” looked into the characteristics of the modernization of Macao’s social and economic governance system and the effective path for the modernization of governance capacity under the framework of "One Country, Two Systems".  It has a far-reaching and practical implication in pointing out the way forward for Macao to play an important role in the modernization process of the governance of the country and raising the standards of the modernization of governance of the country.

Ip Kuai Peng continued to point out that the core of modernization of governance comprised both governance system and governance capacity which were interdependent and indispensable.  Generally speaking, the first step of modernization of governance is to make the rule of law an essential part of governance.  To achieve this, it is vital to make continuous improvements to the system to ensure that Macao is governed according to law, to raise the ability and efficiency of the rule of law, and to enhance the effectiveness of the rule of law in promoting the modernization of the governance system and governance capacity of the SAR.  Secondly, the reform of public administration should be deepened and the awareness of full-cycle management should be built up.  A governance system that combines normal and contingency management should be formed by integrating the characteristics and patterns of urban development and by adopting scientific, refined, and intelligent management measures.  Finally, a social governance system featured by collaboration, co-governance, sharing and common gains should be improved and good top-level design, foundation support and mid-level transition should be ensured to build a social governance community that sees positive interaction among government governance, social adjustment and citizen participation. Ip Kuai Peng emphasized that all the above should be pursued for Macao SAR to embark on the path towards modernization.

Wang Xi said that Macao's governance system was composed of the political system, livelihood security system and contingency management system. To further improve the governance system of Macao SAR and enhance the governance capacity of the government, two aspects must be adhered to: First, adhere to the awareness of innovation. We must enrich the practice of "One Country, Two Systems", develop the new "Hengqin" model and strengthen the cultivation of innovative talent; Second, adhere to the concept of cycle management. First of all, the social governance system is an open system and it must continuously exchange energy with external systems in the form of “input” and “output” so that the social governance system will not become rigid. Therefore, the SAR government should introduce diversified assessment parties to form a dual-cycle system of both internal and external assessment. This will help the government enhance the efficiency of modern governance. Then, appropriate diversification of industries should be promoted to form an economic industrial cycle so that the risk aversion capability of society and the economy can be enhanced.  In addition, cooperation with the Greater Bay Area in education should be strengthened to form a research-teaching cycle, set up a joint research education platform and build a common talent mechanism. Lastly, a people’s livelihood cycle centered around the people of SAR should be formed.  The SAR government should keep up its efforts in building a sound contingency management system, strengthen the role of the coordination of civil defense, improve the urban interaction system and enhance emergency response capability to reduce the risk to the people’s lives and properties should major unforeseen events occur. In the short term, this will effectively alleviate the pressure caused by major unforeseen events on employment and emergency supplies.  In the medium and long term, this will help establish a better education system, social security system, system of protection of housing right and bring about better income distribution.  The healthy operation of the people's livelihood cycle is the cornerstone for our society and economy to progress on the right track.

Li Hongjiang pointed out that serving its people was the focus of governance modernization of the SAR government while protection of housing right and urban planning formed the foundation of modernization of the livelihood security system. The SAR government has recently released consultation documents on “Macao's Urban Master Plan” and “Sandwich Class Housing Scheme”, demonstrating the urgency attached to tackling the issues of urban renewal and improving the housing quality of the people. It should be stressed that strengthening the rule of law is a major characteristics of governance modernization. The Macao SAR government should adopt legal means, act in accordance with legal procedures and listen to various sectors of society in addressing any issue, be it urban planning or sandwich class housing scheme.  This will also make the implementation of details at a later stage easier.

Lin Deqin believed that improving people's livelihood and bestowing greater happiness upon people was the fundamental purpose of social governance. Since the return of sovereignty, indices relating to Macao people's livelihood show that people of Macao are highly satisfied with social security, food safety and culture and education. Their satisfaction with housing, transportation and health care has been increasing. In addition, in the face of the Covid-19 epidemic, the SAR government has launched two rounds of economic relief schemes to ease people’s livelihood, introduced a series of measures to reduce or exempt tax and fees, alleviated people’s hardship, and supported the small and medium enterprises. The government has also adjusted and improved customs clearance arrangements in a timely manner in response to the changing epidemic situations. The achievements in protecting the health of the people and boosting the economy are widely recognized. This demonstrates the outstanding ability and high level of performance of the fifth SAR government headed by Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng in responding to emergency public events. It also shows the macro view and people-oriented thinking of the SAR government. All these have accurately reflected that the policy direction of Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng after taking office is highly consistent with the country’s concept of governance modernization.

The City University of Macau has always been rooted in Macau, serving the country and the region, focusing on local research, forming an interdisciplinary and cross-departmental research team based on the development direction of the country and the development needs of Macao to constantly provide input and recommendations with respect to the governance of the SAR and urban governance and construction of Macao. It also conducts in-depth innovative research that caters for the development needs of the country and region in order to better serve local society and make greater contributions to the sustainable development of the country, Macao and the region.