On December 20th of this year, Macau will celebrate the 25th anniversary of its return to the motherland. Over the past 25 years, with strong support from the central government and the mainland of China, the Macao Special Administrative Region government and various sectors of society have continued to strive, and the "One Country, Two Systems" practice with Macao characteristics has achieved remarkable achievements that have attracted worldwide attention.
Xi Jinping has known Macau for a long time and has always been concerned about its economic and social development as well as the well-being of its people. He has sent a message to Macau to "continuously create a new situation of 'one country, two systems' practice with Macau's characteristics".
Pushing open a window
In December 2014, President Xi Jinping went to Macau to attend the celebration of the 15th anniversary of Macau's return to the motherland and the inauguration ceremony of the fourth government of the Macau Special Administrative Region. Shortly after arriving in Macau, President Xi Jinping went to the Shek Pai Wan public housing estate to warmly visit Macau citizens.
Since the return of Macau to the motherland, the government of the Special Administrative Region has formulated and implemented the public housing policy of "having a place to live and work". Shek Pai Wan Public Housing is the largest public housing project in Macau.
President Xi Jinping walked into the home of resident Tan Yu'e. In the tidy and warm living room, President Xi Jinping sat down with his whole family to chat about daily life. How many people are in the family? "" What job do you do? "" What is the family's income? "" What grade are the children in? "" How much is the housing expenditure? "President Xi Jinping has a detailed understanding of the work and life situation of Tan Yu'e's family, especially the improvement of living conditions.
The room is warm and cozy, with bursts of laughter and joy. President Xi Jinping said that after seeing the decoration of your home and listening to your introduction, I feel that you are a warm, harmonious, and loving family. Your whole family is optimistic and full of aspirations for life. I am happy for you. I hope that you, as a couple, work hard and your children study diligently, contributing your efforts to building Macau and our motherland into a better place.
After leaving Tan Yu'e's house, President Xi Jinping walked into the home of dock worker Liang Zhihua.
President Xi Jinping cordially inquired about the work, social security, housing, daily expenses, and other situations of the couple, asking if they still have any difficulties. After listening to the host's introduction, President Xi Jinping praised them as a harmonious family of three, hoping that the children will grow up healthy, become successful soon, and take on the role of the family.
President Xi Jinping likened this visit to "opening a window" and seeing the warm scene of Macau residents living and working in peace and contentment. He said that this also reflects the gratifying achievements of Macau's economic development, improvement of people's livelihoods, and social stability from one aspect.
Since its return to the motherland, the Macao Special Administrative Region government has made efforts to improve people's livelihoods and deeply implemented the concept of "co construction and sharing, benefiting the people" in areas such as social welfare, social security, medical and health care, and public housing.
I came as promised
 
On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of Macau's return to the motherland, President Xi Jinping made a special trip to Macau for inspection. In 48 hours, out of 19 events, one was an agreement between him and Macau students.
On the eve of International Children's Day on June 1st that year, children from Haojiang Middle School Affiliated Talent School in Macau wrote a letter to President Xi Jinping, carefully drawing colorful strokes to express their love for their motherland, and invited Grandpa Xi to come to Macau again.
Not long after, the children received a reply from President Xi Jinping. The colorful brushstrokes you drew are very good, and your words are also very sincere, fully reflecting the beautiful hearts of the children
The children's invitation is on President Xi Jinping's mind. So there was this meeting six months later.
I came as promised today
President Xi Jinping kindly recalled the scene of opening the letter: "I read it several times and was deeply moved. The letter contains a strong sense of patriotism and patriotism, which is vividly reflected on paper. I also expressed that if given the opportunity, I would come here to take a look and meet the children. Today, this wish has been fulfilled
On October 1, 1949, Du Lan, the then principal of Haojiang Middle School, faced heavy pressure and led all teachers and students to raise the first five-star red flag in Macau on campus.
Looking at the innocent and lovely faces, President Xi Jinping spoke earnestly: "Chinese civilization is the only ancient civilization that has not stopped flowing. Five thousand years of history is the source of our cultural confidence. Only by understanding the humiliating history of the Chinese nation after the Opium War can we have a deeper understanding of the strong desire of the Chinese people for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation
After returning to the motherland, the Macau Non Higher Education System Outline Law was promulgated, which clearly defined patriotism and love for Macau, benevolence and integrity, and compliance with laws and regulations as one of the overall goals of Macau's education, and based on this, formulated the "basic academic requirements" for various disciplines. Correctly understanding the history of the country and Macau, as well as traditional Chinese culture, has been included as an essential skill for students, and Chinese history has been listed as a compulsory course for students in Macau's basic education stage.
Give full play to one's own strengths and serve the needs of the country
In December 2018, President Xi Jinping emphasized the special status and role of Macau in promoting exchanges and cooperation between China and Portuguese speaking countries, as well as the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, during his state visit to Portugal. In April 2019, President Xi Jinping once again stated during a meeting with the President of Portugal at the Great Hall of the People, "Macao has become a bridge for long-term friendly cooperation between China and Portugal
In December 2019, during President Xi Jinping's inspection of Macau, he specifically visited the comprehensive service platform for commercial cooperation between China and Portuguese speaking countries.
The comprehensive platform for commercial and trade cooperation between China and Portuguese speaking countries serves as a fixed conference venue for the China Portuguese Speaking Countries Economic and Trade Cooperation Forum (Macau), integrating commercial and trade services, economic and trade negotiations, product exhibitions, cultural exhibitions, and information exchange, providing convenient services for friendly cooperation between China and Portuguese speaking countries.
President Xi Jinping listened to the introduction of the comprehensive and forum situation, inspected the platform construction achievements exhibition and the display of products from Portuguese speaking countries, and affirmed the progress made in solidly promoting the construction of the China Portuguese speaking countries business cooperation service platform since Macao's return. He stated that building a business cooperation service platform between China and Portuguese speaking countries is an important measure for Macau to leverage its strengths and serve the country.
President Xi Jinping said that seeing the dazzling array of characteristic products from Portuguese speaking countries and the comprehensive professional facilities planned in the plan, it shows that the construction of the Sino Portuguese platform has turned from concept to reality, from blueprint to entity. I feel very happy
Data shows that in 2023, the trade volume between China and Portuguese speaking countries will reach 220.9 billion US dollars, which is about 20 times that of the forum at its inception; As of the end of 2023, China's investment stock in Portuguese speaking countries of various types is about 80 billion US dollars, and the completed turnover of contracted projects is about 140 billion US dollars. China Portugal trade meets the development needs of various countries and shows strong resilience.
Open up vast space for the long-term development of Macau
The closest distance from Hengqin to Macau is only 187 meters.
The distance of 187 meters used to be not only a bay facing each other across the coast, but also a barrier between two systems, two currencies, and two tariff zones.
As a new practical carrier of the great concept of "One Country, Two Systems", the Hengqin Guangdong Macao Deep Cooperation Zone continuously breaks down institutional barriers, supports the moderate and diversified development of Macao's economy, and supports Macao's better integration into the overall national development.
15 years ago, Hengqin Development was born in Macau and took on the mission of promoting moderate and diversified economic development in Macau. After 15 years of development, Hengqin has transformed from a border island into a developed heat island.
The beginning of the original intention and the butterfly transformation of the island began in 2009. In January of that year, Xi Jinping, who was then a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Vice President of the country, came to Hengqin. When meeting with representatives from various sectors of Macau society, he announced good news: the central government has decided to approve the development of Hengqin Island.
During this meeting, Xi Jinping emphasized that in the development process, full consideration should be given to the need for Macau to achieve moderate and diversified economic development. This will undoubtedly bring new development space and opportunities for Macau, which is conducive to the long-term prosperity, stability, and development of the Macau economy
In December 2012, after assuming the position of General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, Xi Jinping left Beijing for his first inspection and came to Guangdong and Hengqin. He encouraged Hengqin to make contributions to the cooperation between Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao.
In October 2018, President Xi Jinping visited Hengqin again during his inspection tour in Guangdong. He emphasized, "Hengqin has inherent advantages in Guangdong Macau cooperation. We need to strengthen policy support, enrich the connotation of cooperation, expand cooperation space, develop emerging industries, and promote more dynamic economic development in Macau
In December 2019, President Xi Jinping attended the celebration of the 20th anniversary of Macao's return to the motherland and the inauguration ceremony of the fifth government of the Macao Special Administrative Region, and delivered an important speech, pointing out that "we must particularly do a good job in the development of Hengqin through cooperation between Zhuhai and Macao, and open up broad space and inject new impetus for Macao's long-term development.
The construction of the Hengqin Guangdong Macao Deep Cooperation Zone is the focus and stage for Macao's integration into the Greater Bay Area. In February 2019, the "Outline of the Development Plan for the Guangdong Hong Kong Macao Greater Bay Area" was released, clarifying that Macao is one of the four central cities in the Greater Bay Area and the core engine of regional development. In September 2021, the Hengqin Guangdong Macao Deep Cooperation Zone was established, opening a new chapter in the development of "Qin Macao Integration".
Under the personal care and promotion of President Xi Jinping, the Hengqin Guangdong Macao Deep Cooperation Zone was officially closed and put into operation at midnight on March 1, 2024. The Hengqin Guangdong Macao Shenzhen Cooperation Zone has officially implemented branch line management, allowing for the opening up of the "first line" of goods and the management of the "second line". The high convenience of personnel entry and exit has injected stronger momentum into the moderate and diversified development of the Macao economy, supporting Macao's better integration into the national development situation, and continuously enriching the new practice of "one country, two systems".
As of September 2024, the number of Macau residents living and residing in Hengqin reached 16539, a year-on-year increase of 19.1%; The total number of Australian enterprises reached 6461, an increase of 39.3% compared to the establishment of the Shenzhen Cooperation Zone.
As President Xi Jinping has said, with the joint efforts of the central government, the Macao Special Administrative Region government, and people from all walks of life, and with the strong support of people of all ethnic groups in China, the practice of "One Country, Two Systems" in Macao will surely write a new brilliant chapter, and Macao, the beautiful lotus of our motherland, will bloom with even more brilliant and charming colors!