Using Macao as the jumping-off point for entry into a vast foreign market, local companies were hooked up with quality Macao business resources and capital. This occurred at the China/Portuguese-Speaking Countries Cooperation & Development Fund Promotion Session in Zhuhai on July 24.

It started with $1-billion cooperation development fund established in 2013 to guide and support cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. Operating in a market-oriented manner, it settled in Macao in 2017 to use its close and extensive connections with member countries.

Fund headquarters unveiled last October in Macao [Photo courtesy xinhuanet.com]

The fund has invested in projects in Mozambique, Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, East Timor, and even Macao and Portugal. The countries are said to all have promising market prospects with rapid and steady growth potential.

Projects involve agricultural modernization, building materials, and photovoltaic products, according to Song Yunsong, general manager of the fund management department.

Zhuhai has already partnered with Portuguese-speaking countries in biomedicine, wine, culture, and education, and there is room for further cooperation, according to an official.

A Zhuhai-Macao economic trade cooperation platform was promoted during the event to expedite business ties with one-stop service for trade, financing, and marketing. It is a joint effort between the Zhuhai Commerce Bureau and Zhukuan Group, a Macao-based company responsible for Zhuhai business activities in the city and Hong Kong.