A representative of Hengqin revealed on Wednesday in Portugal that the island will have, in July, a new Center for Cooperation and Exchange of Science and Technology between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries. A new prize exclusively for companies from Macau and Portuguese-speaking countries will also be included in a competition in the Cooperation Zone
A Science and Technology Cooperation and Exchange Center between China and Portuguese-speaking countries will be inaugurated in July this year in Hengqin, revealed a person responsible for the special economic zone, in Lisbon, this week.
António Lei, director of the Economic Development Services of the Deep Cooperation Zone between Guangdong and Macao, in Hengqin, revealed that the new center will support the introduction and external promotion of science and technology companies.
“We want this center to create a platform for exchange between entrepreneurs, startups and technology companies from Portugal, Brazil, other PLPs and China”, he said.
Lei was one of the guests at the “Macao-Portugal Investment and Tourism Promotion Seminar”, co-organized by AICEP Portugal Global, Turismo de Portugal I.P., the Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) and the Directorate by the Macao SAR Tourism Office (DST).
The event, organized at the Intercontinental Hotel in Lisbon, served to present the “trade, investment and tourism environment, the industrial layout and the political advantages of Macau and Hengqin”. The seminar was part of the program organized for the first visit of the Chief Executive of Macau to Portugal, from 18 to 22 April.
The representative of the Deep Cooperation Zone also indicated that the third edition of the Hengqin International Scientific and Technological Entrepreneurship Competition will include a new prize, called New Emerging Lotus, exclusively for companies from Macau and Portuguese-speaking countries.
A total of 10 Emerging New Lotus prizes of 800,000 RMB each will be awarded in this year’s edition.
Organized since 2018, the Hengqin International Scientific and Technological Entrepreneurship Competition supports innovation and entrepreneurship teams that have achieved “pioneering innovation results”, “crucial” and with “good prospects for industrialization”, with monetary prizes of up to 300 million renminbi, including a one-time prize of 100 million renminbi.
The third edition of the competition focuses on projects in four areas: integrated circuits and electronic components, biomedicine and medical devices, Big Data and artificial intelligence, and new materials and energies.
Portuguese know-how
In his opening speech, Macao SAR Secretary for Economy and Finance, Lei Wai Nong, said that a favorable business environment will be created for foreign investors interested in entering the Chinese market to use Macau and Hengqin as a starting point. to explore the “vast market of Mainland China”.
Francisco André, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Portugal, then highlighted the possibilities of partnerships in technological innovation and tourism with the Macao SAR, pointing to the more than 400 Portuguese companies that currently “export to Macau a wide range of goods and services ”.
“Today, we want to envision the future and strengthen the foundations from a perspective of growth, not just in the number of companies present in each territory, but in the number of partnerships, opportunities and volume of investments. We want to welcome the instrument of Macanese investment in Portugal”, he stressed.
During the seminar, an agreement was signed between IPIM and the Portuguese Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade (AICEP) to reinforce the connection between the two entities.
Also present at the event were a delegation of more than 40 businessmen from Macau, present in Portugal since April 16 for a visit focused on promotional activities in the areas of economy, trade and tourism.
The businessmen traveled to Lisbon and Porto to visit 13 local entities, including industrial and commercial institutions, as well as companies from key industries such as ‘big health’, high technology, commerce, among others.
One of the stops included a visit to Fábrica de Unicórnios de Lisboa, at Hub Criativo do Beato, a platform for innovation programs inaugurated by the current Lisbon executive, led by Carlos Moedas.
“Portugal has successfully developed an ecosystem that favors the emergence of startups, and we are available to share this experience with the Exchange, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center for young people from China and Portuguese-speaking countries in Macau, to collaborate in all activities where it is understood that there is mutual interest”, said Francisco André in his speech.
