Macau, China, 23 June – The head of the Macau government, Edmund Ho, said Thursday in Lisbon that more steps would be taken to encourage Portuguese businesspeople to find new opportunities to enter the Chinese market, through Macau.

Ho was speaking at the end of a meeting with the President of Portugal and Prime Minister José Sócrates.

Ho also said that “the Portuguese authorities are in agreement about the role of Macau as a platform for relations between Portugal and China,” and underlined that there was a “wish to maintain and preserve the territory as a link in China-Europe relations and with the community of Portuguese-speaking countries, as well as for economic and commercial cooperation.”

The head of the Macau government also said that “it is everyone’s belief that after this visit, with the efforts and determination of all parties, it will be possible to develop and further consolidate Macau’s position, in the future.”

Ho added that “holding a China/European Union cooperation event in 2007, in Macau, is further proof of the platform role the territory is gaining, in line with the policy of the local government, which wants to boost, through its special relation with Portugal, relations with Portuguese-speaking and European countries.” (macauhub)