Representatives of member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation gathered on June 27 in the Macao Special Administrative Region for the 13th APEC Tourism Ministerial Meeting.
Under the theme “Digital Innovation, Collaborative Empowerment: Leveraging Tourism for an Asia-Pacific Community”, the meeting brought together over 200 participants from APEC economies to hold in-depth discussions on sustainable tourism development and the joint exploration of new pathways for tourism cooperation across the Asia-Pacific region.
Delegates said tourism is an important driving force for economic development in the Asia-Pacific region, with a solid foundation, abundant potential, and a promising future, according to a statement by the Government Information Bureau of Macao SAR.
In recent years, the scope of mutual visa exemptions has continuously expanded, steadily improving the facilitation of cross-border tourism, while tourism exchanges have continued to grow in scale, they added.
The Tourism Ministerial Meeting is an important component of the APEC China 2026 series of events and will serve as a new starting point for member economies to further deepen tourism cooperation, the statement said.
As the host of the 2026 APEC, China will hold the 33rd APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, in November. Approximately 300 APEC-related meetings and events are taking place in multiple Chinese cities throughout the year.
According to discussions at this week’s meeting, it is expected that APEC member economies will jointly advance digital innovation to promote the high-quality development of the tourism industry; jointly explore cooperative empowerment to consolidate the foundations of tourism-supported prosperity; and share tourism values in order to build an Asia-Pacific community hand in hand.
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Representatives from APEC economies also shared views on tourism development, exploring how digital and smart technologies contribute to regional socio-economic growth, priority action areas, multilateral cooperation to advance barrier-free travel, and ways to engage more stakeholders so that tourism innovation reaches a wider population.
Ahead of the ministerial meeting, the APEC Tourism Working Group meetings were convened on June 24-25. Macao SAR is not a member economy of APEC but has been a guest economy in the APEC Tourism Working Group under the “one country, two systems” framework.
A welcome dinner was also held on June 26, co-hosted by the Chinese Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Macao SAR government.
Macao Chief Executive Sam Hou-fai said it had been 12 years since the APEC Tourism Ministerial Meeting was last hosted in Macao in 2014.
Throughout different historical eras, Macao has consistently played a crucial role in fostering exchanges between China and the West, and Macao is committed to delivering new contributions across diverse fields including international tourism cooperation, Sam said.
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This was echoed by tourism and cultural officials from APEC member economies when they wrapped up the 13th APEC Tourism Ministerial Meeting on June 28 with a tour showcasing Macao’s distinctive blend of Eastern and Western heritage.
During the visit, they said that the Macao SAR’s commitment to developing its tourism sector and promoting exchanges between China and the West makes it an ideal platform for advancing Asia-Pacific tourism cooperation.
The delegation visited an exhibition featuring museum cultural creative products from 22 Chinese museums. They also joined workshops to make almond cookies and dragon beard candies, both Macao intangible cultural heritage, before touring the Ruins of St. Paul's, part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Historic Centre of Macao, the Macao Museum, and the Macao Grand Prix Museum.
Contact the writers at kelly@chinadailyapac.com
