Following the conclusion of this year's National People's Congress sessions, the Macau Special Administrative Region has entered the drafting phase of its third five-year plan. This development follows the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region's commencement of work on its inaugural five-year plan. What distinguishes the five-year planning processes in Macau and Hong Kong? Why did this systematic planning initiative begin in Macau? How do Macau residents perceive the changes brought to their lives by the first two implemented five-year plans?
An interview was conducted with Sio Chi Wai, a deputy to the 14th National People's Congress and President of the Macau Development Strategy Research Centre, to delve into these topics.
Regarding the current progress of Macau's third five-year plan, Sio Chi Wai indicated that during this critical initial period of the national 15th Five-Year Plan, the Macau SAR government is currently drafting the preliminary version of the plan's text, including the consultation document. Concurrently, intensive preliminary research is underway, with active efforts to gather opinions from various sectors of society. Ensuring the implementation of the "patriots administering Macau" principle and the stability of the executive-led system form the fundamental prerequisites for aligning the two plans.
During the planning process, the Macau SAR government must place high importance on public participation, broadly incorporating views from all societal sectors, while adhering to scientific governance. It must balance diverse demands to build consensus, effectively transforming the institutional advantages of "one country, two systems" into governance efficacy, thereby guiding society towards higher-quality development.
The national 15th Five-Year Plan has adjusted the positioning of Hong Kong and Macau's roles from "integrating into the national development landscape" to "integrating into and serving the national development landscape." Article 37 of the National Development Planning Law of the People's Republic of China also explicitly emphasizes upholding the "one country, two systems" principle and supports the Macau SAR in proactively dovetailing with the national development plan to integrate into and serve the national development landscape. Consequently, Macau should achieve its own appropriate diversification and transformation while serving the national strategy. Leveraging the nation's vast market, complete industrial system, and strong innovation capabilities, combined with Macau's unique institutional advantages, geographical location, and international characteristics, Macau can serve the national development landscape with higher quality.
In terms of promoting appropriately diversified economic development, the third five-year plan is expected to continue deepening the development of Macau's existing advantageous industry – tourism. With the advancement of the Macau International Integrated Tourism and Culture Zone, it will strengthen tourism linkages within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area, consolidating and enhancing Macau's competitiveness as an international tourism destination.
Through the "Macau + Hengqin" model, the plan aims to strengthen four key emerging industries. First, enhancing financial cooperation between Macau and Hengqin, promoting cross-border financial innovation, supporting the internationalization of the Renminbi, and exploring capital account liberalization, positioning Macau as a pivot for Greater Bay Area enterprises "going global" and for attracting international resources. Second, focusing on technology research, development, and high-end manufacturing by utilizing Macau's four State Key Laboratories and combining them with Hengqin's spatial advantages to promote the commercialization of research成果. Third, developing the traditional Chinese medicine industry by leveraging the China-Portuguese-speaking Countries platform to facilitate the internationalization of TCM products, strengthening standardization, and integrating with modern technology. Fourth, fostering the conventions, exhibitions, commerce, trade, culture, and sports industries by building brand exhibitions, strengthening coordination with Hengqin in this sector, and establishing them as new engines for economic growth.
Regarding Macau's key development positioning as "one center, one platform, one base," the third five-year plan will further deepen this. The World Centre for Tourism and Leisure ("one center") will evolve beyond gaming tourism towards an "International Integrated Tourism and Culture Zone," enhancing tourism integration within the Greater Bay Area and offering diverse cultural tourism products. The Commercial and Trade Cooperation Service Platform between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries ("one platform") will expand from pure commerce and trade to a hub serving the nation's high-level opening-up, utilizing Macau's role as a rules interface to assist mainland enterprises, especially SMEs in the Greater Bay Area, with international certification and legal services via Macau for global expansion. The Base for Exchange and Cooperation with Chinese Culture as the Mainstream and Diverse Cultures Coexisting ("one base") will enhance international visibility and cultural influence, hosting more international conferences and exhibitions, and reinforcing Macau's role as an important window for cultural exchange between Chinese and Western civilizations.
Additionally, a new positioning as a "High Ground for Gathering International High-End Talent" has been added, following guidance from the national 15th Five-Year Plan. This involves accelerating the construction of the Macau-Hengqin International Education (University) City, with plans to commence initial operations focusing primarily on postgraduate education starting from the 2026/2027 academic year, providing talent support for Macau's diversified industrial development.
Specific key projects in the third five-year plan include four major initiatives: the Macau-Hengqin International Education (University) City, addressing talent cultivation and aggregation; the Macau International Integrated Tourism and Culture Zone, consolidating tourism advantages; the Macau West Pearl River Delta International Air Transport Hub, improving logistics and transportation networks; and the Macau Technology R&D Industrial Park, supported by government industrial funds for high-tech projects. Furthermore, financial and service platforms such as a Renminbi clearing center, green bond issuance platform, wealth management platform, and international brand incubation center will be established.
To address development bottlenecks related to land, institutions, and talent during the implementation of the third five-year plan, Macau will utilize the development of the Guangdong-Macau In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin to expand development space, achieving integrated "Macau + Hengqin" development. Breaking institutional bottlenecks relies on promoting rule connectivity and mechanism alignment, exploring the applicability of Macau's laws within the Hengqin cooperation zone, while deepening public administration reform to build a clean, efficient, and proactive service-oriented government.
Attracting talent is paramount for industrial development, as talent is the core engine for industrial upgrading and innovation, crucial for achieving endogenous economic growth and sustainable development. To overcome talent bottlenecks, Macau will focus on top-level design and long-term industrial planning. This involves systematic education reform and continuous incentive programs to cultivate future talent locally and attract returnees, leveraging the strengths of Macau's higher education institutions and fostering deep cooperation with universities and research institutes to nurture more local talent. Secondly, talent introduction policies will be optimized, providing convenient visa, residency, children's education, and other supporting services for international high-end talent, creating a livable and work-conducive environment to attract and retain outstanding individuals in Macau.
Concerning which key projects and major policies from the third five-year plan will be implemented first, the four major projects – the Macau-Hengqin International Education (University) City, Macau International Integrated Tourism and Culture Zone, Macau West Pearl River Delta International Air Transport Hub, and Macau Technology R&D Industrial Park – are crucial drivers. These projects, covering education, talent, tourism, leisure, logistics hubs, and housing, address immediate needs for economic transformation while laying the foundation for long-term sustainable development. Ensuring the high-quality and timely completion of these strategic projects during the plan period is vital for providing solid support for Macau's appropriately diversified economic development.
To ensure effective implementation, meticulous management is required to avoid resource waste. This involves clarifying responsibilities, establishing a combined model of internal government supervision and external societal oversight for evaluation, and conducting comprehensive assessments linked to government performance management, ultimately building a full-chain mechanism covering planning, execution, supervision, and accountability.
Reflecting on the contributions of the first and second five-year plans, Macau's first plan established the direction for proactively aligning with national strategy, while the second focused on perfecting the national security system, adjusting the development structure, and promoting appropriate economic diversification. The third five-year plan not only deeply aligns with the national 15th Five-Year Plan but also explicitly emphasizes integrating into and serving the national development landscape, entering a new stage of high-quality advancement and joint development with the nation.
The third plan continues the main thread of pursuing appropriate economic diversification from the previous plans, persistently deepening the construction of "one center, one platform, one base," thereby achieving a significant upgrade in Macau's role – from a "coordinator" to a "participant" and now to an "interactive partner" in institutional synergy. Simultaneously, the new goal of building a "High Ground for Gathering International High-End Talent" strengthens the strategic position of "Macau + Hengqin," signifying Macau's elevated level of integration and contribution within the national development landscape.
Macau's planning experience offers valuable lessons for Hong Kong. Firstly, proactively dovetailing with national strategy, integrating one's own advantages into the national development landscape to find a precise positioning within the national blueprint. Secondly, conducting sound top-level design, incorporating public opinion, and building societal consensus. Thirdly, maintaining policy continuity, using planning for piloting initiatives to ensure the development direction remains on track. Fourthly, perfecting the national security system, integrating national security across all domains to construct a societal-wide security network.
Regarding how Article 37 of the National Development Planning Law provides legal support, Sio Chi Wai noted that this law, for the first time, offers legal guarantees for Hong Kong and Macau to formulate and implement development plans. Article 37 emphasizes supporting the two SARs in proactively dovetailing with the national development plan and integrating into and serving the national development landscape. This elevates the alignment of the SARs with the national plan from policy guidance to legal norm, providing institutional rigidity. It also offers national resource support to help the SARs overcome development bottlenecks, enabling them to better utilize their unique advantages to serve national strategy through mutual empowerment. This regulation clarifies that proactive alignment with the national development plan is not only an opportunity for the SARs' own development but also a constitutional responsibility at the legal level, thereby providing a solid legal basis and institutional guarantee for the smooth formulation and implementation of Macau's third five-year plan and Hong Kong's first five-year plan.
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