To facilitate the implementation of the Strategic Plan for Economic and Trade Co-operation of the 6th Ministerial Conference of Forum Macao and support the cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries in the areas of bilateral investment, the blue economy and others, Ji Xianzheng, Secretary-General of the Permanent Secretariat of Forum Macao, led a delegation of the Permanent Secretariat to participate in the 24th China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) and other activities in Xiamen from 7 to 10 September 2024. 

The CIFIT serves as a fundamental platform for the implementation of China’s “bring in” and “go global” strategies. This year’s CIFIT, with the emphasis on its theme “Invest in China”, strives to establish a platform that connects global industrial cooperation. At the event venue, the Permanent Secretariat set up an image exhibition related to economic and trade cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, with the aim of promoting the investment environment of China and Portuguese-speaking countries and cooperation achievements.

On the morning of 8 September, the delegation attended the CIFIT’s opening ceremony. On the afternoon of the same day, the Permanent Secretariat organised the Exchange Session on Marine Fishery Cooperation between Fuzhou and Portuguese-speaking Countries, with a view to probing into the joint development of the blue economy and encouraging Fuzhou and Portuguese-speaking countries to forge fishery cooperation. The exchange session, presided over by Secretary-General Ji Xianzheng, was attended by Liu Decheng, Director of the Economic Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao SAR; Lin Zhiliang, Vice Mayor of the Fuzhou Municipal People's Government; directors of the Fuzhou Municipal Ocean and Fishery Bureau; representatives of Fuzhou fishery enterprises; and all members of the Permanent Secretariat’s delegation.

At the exchange session, the Fuzhou Municipal Ocean and Fishery Bureau introduced the overview of the city’s deep-sea fishery development, while representatives from the city’s key fishery enterprises talked about the process of forging international fishery cooperation and the requirements for cooperation in areas of aquaculture, harvesting, processing and trading. The six representatives of Forum Macao from Cabo Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Portugal, and São Tomé and Príncipe, respectively, presented local fishery development, related policies and requirements for international cooperation. In addition, Li Jiabei, Advisor of the Executive Office, gave an introduction to the fishery industry of Angola, Brazil and Timor-Leste. After the event, the representatives of Fuzhou’s fishery enterprises established contact with the representatives of Portuguese-speaking countries and exchanged insights on promoting future cooperation.

During the CIFIT’s event period, Secretary-General Ji Xianzheng was interviewed by media such as Sina, The Paper, Hong Kong Commercial Daily and others, elaborating on the Strategic Plan for Economic and Trade Co-operation of the 6th Ministerial Conference of Forum Macao, as well as bilateral investment and ocean economic cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. Ji also mentioned the expectations of deepening the bilateral investment between China and Portuguese-speaking countries by seizing the opportunities brought by Macao’s role as a platform between China and Portugues-speaking countries, Macao’s “1+4” industrial diversification development strategies and the construction of the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin.

During the visits, members of the delegation; Lin Zhiliang, Vice Mayor of the Fuzhou Municipal People's Government; and Huang Shizhong, Vice Chairman of the Xiamen Municipal Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, exchanged opinions on their work and toured the CIFIT’s pavilions.