Portugal and Macau will soon strengthen co-operation in the fields of science and technology, the Portuguese Secretary of State for Industry, João Vasconcelos, said on Tuesday.

On the last day of his visit to Macau, Mr Vasconcelos said – as quoted by local newspaper Jornal Tribuna de Macau – the goal is part of a strategy to show Macau “a new Portugal”, with “a new economy”, “new entrepreneurs” and a focus on science and technology.

The Secretary of State added this strategy could only be achieved by enhancing “Portugal’s role as a platform for Asian and [in particular] Chinese business people to enter Europe; and Macau’s role as a platform for Portuguese and other Portuguese-speaking business people to enter Asia”.

Mr Vasconcelos added that further “concrete steps” to those ends would be taken in “the next months”, according to the newspaper. He also said he believed Macau offered the conditions needed to welcome “any Portuguese or European entrepreneur” to settle in the city, and from there “to start trading and doing business with China or other Asian countries”.

The Secretary of State on Tuesday met with Macau’s Secretary for Economy and Finance, Lionel Leong Vai Tac. He also had lunch with more than 40 people with ties to business, said the media outlet.