Macau on track for handover, says Governor

Macau is on the right track politically and economically ahead of its December handover to the mainland, the Governor, General Vasco Rocha Vieira said.

'There is no need for Macau to change, neither because its current transition comes to an end nor because of the unexpected economic crisis in Asia that harms even those economies that did not commit any careless acts,' he said.

Macau should continue to defend its 'economic vocation' of being a centre for co-operation, services and tourism, he said, adding that Macau was paying a 'heavy price' in the Asian financial turmoil.

Macau's gross domestic product has shrunk in the past four years, from $59.3 billion in 1995 to $56.4 billion last year, according to official statistics released this month. The Governor described Macau's 12 years of transitional rule since the signing of the Sino-Portuguese Joint Declaration in Beijing in 1987 as 'stimulating and creative'.

He added that the transition process had 'changed the face' of Macau and modernised its infrastructure. While saying that Macau was 'on the right track,' the Governor acknowledged that it was 'always possible to want more and better'.

General Vieira, who has been at the helm of the administration since 1991, made the remarks at a dinner party hosted by the Macau Chinese Chamber of Commerce on Monday night.