MACAU AND GUANGDONG province's joint effort to promote neighbourly relations provides an example of partnership and constructive co-operation for the Pearl River Delta's various regions.
Guangdong Governor Lu Ruihua, an engineer and university teacher by profession, paid a three-day working visit to Macau earlier this week. Mr Lu visited Macau's state-of-the-art sewage works and waste-incineration plant, and expressed admiration for Macau's efforts to protect the environment.
He pledged to support Macau's plans to launch several joint-venture development projects in the adjacent Zhuhai Special Economic Zone, including an export-processing zone near Gaolan Port and a tourism complex on Hengqin Island. He also promised to ask Beijing to extend the operating hours for cargo inspections at Zhuhai's customs office.
The extension would benefit haulage companies carrying merchandise between Macau International Airport and clients in the Pearl River estuary.
Macau Chief Executive Edmund Ho Hau-wah has developed close ties with Guangdong as one of his top priorities. Working relationships with Zhuhai, Shenzhen, Shantou and other municipalities in Guangdong province have been strengthened since Macau's return to Chinese rule in 1999. And the central Government has recently given the green light to lease to Macau, for a nominal fee, a parcel of land for constructing a new checkpoint at the Zhuhai border.
Although Macau's co-operation with Guangdong is rolling full-steam ahead, its ties with Hong Kong leave much to be desired.
Officials and community leaders in Macau complain privately that certain segments of Hong Kong's public administration and political establishment keep Macau at arm's length, even though both cities are integral parts of the 'one country, two systems' principle.