Decoding a 25-year economic, social miracle

Transformation

Just a brief 10-minute drive from the Border Gate is a colorful downtown area where the lines between Mediterranean charm and the region's Lingnan culture blur.

Centered around the 620-meter Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro, or "new avenue", Chinese markets and temples, as well as Southern European-style churches and residential buildings, dot the streets and hills. This area has served as the commercial heart of Macao for centuries.

Adorned with black-and-white calcada Portuguese-style pavements, and low-rise residential and religious buildings of Latin and Chinese designs, Macao's downtown is on most tourists' bucket list.

During the day, visitors can sample the treats of food stalls serving local favorites such as a fried pork chop bun and beef jerky.

The thriving cultural and commercial strip, along with 22 iconic buildings, was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2005 and is known as the "Historic Centre of Macao".

Wu Zhiliang, president of the board of directors of the Macao Foundation, said the inscription was affirmation by the international community of the city's contributions to dialogues between Eastern and Western cultures.

Wu's foundation — a semi-official body aimed at promoting various sectors of the city — has teamed up with the Macao SAR government to carry out educational and research projects on the historic center.

At the southern tip of the downtown district stands A-Ma Temple, a sacred site dedicated to the sea goddess Mazu. According to local lore, the temple is believed to be the etymological root of the city's name — Macao.

In 2023, a light rail station was opened near the temple, offering transit services that connect the Macao Peninsula to Taipa Island. Taking a 13-minute train journey from the station adjacent to A-Ma Temple, passengers can see opulent hotels and replicas of the Eiffel Tower and Big Ben. This is the new heart of Macao's leisure industry — Cotai.

Twenty-five years ago, the 6.1-square-kilometer stretch of reclaimed land was empty and awaiting planning approval.

With benefits resulting from the individual visit program and relaxed casino operation rules, Cotai has developed into a cluster of international hotels, shopping malls, casinos, performance venues, and sports facilities, providing tourists with exciting new experiences.

Cotai is home to another pillar of Macao's economy, the gaming industry. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, gambling revenue accounted for more than 60 percent of Macao's GDP at its peak, and casino operators paid more than 100 billion patacas in taxes every year.

The flourishing tourism and gaming industries have brought unimaginable wealth to Macao and its 700,000 residents.

This wealth has allowed the SAR government to build a comprehensive social welfare system envied by many other cities.

Macao provides free medical services to all residents aged 65 and above. The city inaugurated a 15-year free education program in the 2007-2008 academic year, covering from kindergarten to the end of secondary school, and subsidizes people who pursue further education.

The Wealth Partaking Scheme was initiated in 2008, to distribute cash to every resident holding Macao SAR permanent or non-permanent identity cards. In 2024, every permanent resident received 10,000 patacas, while non-permanent residents were given 6,000 patacas.

For over two decades, Macao has sustained an overall unemployment rate below 2 percent, and the median monthly income has swelled from 4,920 patacas in 1999 to 17,500 patacas in 2023.