Sands China Hosts Sharing Session on the NPC and CPPCC

(Macao, Mar 25, 2024) – Sands China Ltd. hosted a seminar for team members and local students Friday at The Londoner^® Macao on the recent sessions of the National People's Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

Executive Vice Chairman of Sands China Ltd. Dr. Wilfred Wong moderated the event, and said: "This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the People's Republic of China and the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Macao SAR. It is also a critical year for achieving the goals of the 14th Five-Year Plan. In light of this, Sands China is honoured to invite deputies to the NPC and CPPCC to share the important messages conveyed during the two sessions. This is intended to promote the core values of patriotism and love for Macao, while deepening participants' understanding of the future development direction of the country. With this sharing session, we hope to inspire all team members to comprehend and implement the spirit of the two sessions; leverage the institutional advantages of the One Country, Two Systems policy; and strengthen Macao's position as a world centre of tourism and leisure."

Four distinguished guests led the Sands China Distinguished Speaker Forum Series – The Spirit of NPC and CPPCC: Kou Hoi In, member of the NPC Standing Committee and president of the Legislative Assembly of the Macao SAR; Sio Chi Wai, member of the NPC and president of the Macao Development Strategy Research Center; and Ma Chi Ngai, member of the CPPCC National Committee and president of the Macao Chamber of Commerce.

Other guests of honour at the event included Sun Yaohua, director of the Economic Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macao SAR; Chio Pou Wai, acting head of the Division of Youth Development of the Education and Youth Development Bureau of the Macao SAR Government; Paulo Cheong, vice president of human resources of Sands China Ltd.; and Kelvin Tan, executive vice president of international marketing of Sands China Ltd.

Around 250 people attended the sharing session, including Sands China management team members and young participants of the company's development programmes. Sands China provided on-site simultaneous English interpretation to convey the spirit of the NPC and CPPCC for non-Chinese speakers. The company also broadcast a live feed of the event at the back-of-house areas of Sands China's properties, allowing team members to benefit from the seminar remotely.

Speaking at the event, Kou quoted Chinese President Xi Jinping's concept of "new quality productive forces," encouraging the industry to explore innovation while preserving tradition, and focusing on promoting high-quality development. He believes that while Macao's gaming industry is developing in a healthy and orderly manner, it needs to introduce more non-gaming elements under the '1+4' policy advocated by the SAR government to promote further economic diversification.

Sio stated that in order to understand China, one must first understand and comprehend the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and grasp the country's current situation and development direction. He believes that the world is facing a new pattern after the pandemic, and therefore, China emphasises modernisation of the national governance system and capacity to meet challenges. The future development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area must also be integrated with the national strategy, overcoming institutional barriers through digital management and other means. Additionally, he expressed his confidence in the nation's development.

Ma pointed out that the country's economy is moving forward steadily, and that cooperation between Hengqin and Macao in recent years has brought many new development opportunities to Macao – encouraging young people in Macao to seize the opportunity to utilize Macao's unique advantages and role as a bridge, promote the exchange of ideas and common development between the people of the four Cross-Straits districts, and better integrate into the overall development of the country.

The Sands China Distinguished Speaker Forum Series – The Spirit of NPC and CPPCC is part of Sands China's ongoing effort to promote professionalism education, and to comprehensively strengthen employee knowledge of the business environment and national development – so as to make essential contributions to the development of Macao into a world centre of tourism and leisure. Sands China has been committed to improving the professionalism of its team members company-wide, through various initiatives that have included professional literacy training courses, Greater Bay Area visits, professional lectures, a distinguished speaker forum series, various professional exchange activities, and film screenings. More than 70 professionalism activities have been held to date, totalling over 63,000 participants.

 

Photo caption: Four distinguished guests lead Friday's seminar: Kou Hoi In (second from left), member of the NPC Standing Committee and president of the Legislative Assembly of the Macao SAR; Sio Chi Wai (second from right), member of the NPC and president of Macao Development Strategy Research Center; and Ma Chi Ngai (first from right), member of the CPPCC National Committee and president of the Macao Chamber of Commerce. It was moderated by Dr. Wilfred Wong (first from left), executive vice chairman of Sands China Ltd.

Photo caption: Guest speakers gather with Sands China management after the event on Friday.

Left to right: Kelvin Tan, executive vice president of international marketing of Sands China Ltd.; Chio Pou Wai, acting head of the Division of Youth Development of the Education and Youth Development Bureau of the Macao SAR Government; Ma Chi Ngai, member of the CPPCC National Committee and president of the Macao Chamber of Commerce; Kou Hoi In, member of the NPC Standing Committee and president of the Legislative Assembly of the Macao SAR; Dr. Wilfred Wong, executive vice chairman of Sands China Ltd.; Sio Chi Wai, member of the NPC and president of the Macao Development Strategy Research Center; Sun Yaohua, director of the Economic Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macao SAR; Paulo Cheong, vice president of human resources of Sands China Ltd.