This year marks the 25th anniversary of Macao's return to the motherland. Over the past quarter century, Macao has been transformed into one of Asia's wealthiest cities, showcasing remarkable progress.

Since 1999, Macao has thrived under the "one country, two systems" policy. With robust support from the central government and the mainland, the special administrative region (SAR)'s economy has experienced unprecedented growth.

Robust economic growth

In 1999, Macao's GDP stood at 51.9 billion Macao pataca (MOP). By 2023, it had skyrocketed to nearly 379.5 billion MOP.  By the end of last year, the total savings of Macao residents surpassed 700 billion MOP, an eightfold increase compared to 1999. This year, Forbes magazine ranked Macao the second richest place on Earth, trailing only Luxembourg.

Since the launch of the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin in 2021, the integration between Hengqin and Macao has accelerated. This development continues to inject new momentum and expand opportunities for Macao's future.

A milestone in Macao's regional integration was the opening of the Hengqin line of the Macao Light Rapid Transit in December. The 2.2-kilometer line connects Macao's Lotus Station with Hengqin Station, linking Macao to the one-hour living circle of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Booming sci-tech innovation

Over the past 25 years, Macao has cultivated a thriving ecosystem for sci-tech innovation. Last year, the Macao Science-1 satellites were launched, marking the first space science satellite program jointly developed by the mainland and Macao.

The Macao Science-1 satellite science team recently released China's first WM3 4D Earth magnetic field model, which leverages the high-precision geomagnetic data collected by the satellites.

The collaborative innovation between Macao and Hengqin is flourishing. The University of Macau and the Macau University of Science and Technology's industry-education-research demonstration bases are now located in Hengqin. These institutions are driving the transformation of sci-tech achievements through the "R&D in Macao + transformation in Hengqin" strategy.

As of November, Hengqin had incubated 898 youth entrepreneurship projects from Hong Kong and Macao, including 815 projects led by Macao innovators.