Sao Tome and Principe has appointed Gualter Vera Cruz as the representative to the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries, said Xu Yingzhen, the Secretary-General of the institution.

With the appointment of Vera Cruz, an advisor to the Sao Tome and Principe minister of finance, trade and economics, who will take office during the next regular meeting of the organisation’s permanent secretariat, Forum Macau will have delegates from the eight Portuguese-speaking countries: Angola, Brazil, Cabo Verde (Cape Verde), Guinea Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, Sao Tome and Principe and Timor-Leste (East Timor).

Sao Tome and Principe was admitted to Forum Macau in March 2017 after re-establishing diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China in December 2016.

Forum Macau is undergoing a phase of internal adjustment and restructuring to provide faster and more effective responses to its role of linking China with Portuguese-speaking countries.

In addition to the nomination in 2016 of the new Secretary-General Xu Yingzhen, appointed by China, the Ministry of Commerce appointed Ding Tian as Deputy Secretary-General this year, who joined Echo Chan, also Deputy Secretary-General but appointed by the Macau government and the Mozambican diplomat Vicente Manuel, who holds the same position by appointment of the Portuguese-speaking countries.

Vicente Manuel will soon leave this role, which will then be taken on by Portuguese economist Rodrigo Brum.

As part of the restructuring of Forum Macau, on Monday the Macau government appointed Teresa Mok as coordinator of the Support Office of the Permanent Secretariat.

The coordinating structure of Forum Macau also includes Hu Huajun as the coordinator of the Management Office and Timor-Leste representative Danilo Henriques as the liaison office coordinator representing the Portuguese-speaking countries. (macauhub)