Making ‘a positive difference to Macau and China’

Lei Heong Iok and Grant Bowie have both stressed Macau’s role in contributing to the Greater China region.
“MGM, along with the other big-name [casino operators], have changed Macau […] and if we try hard, Macau may change China,” said Lei, before adding that the territory’s future is in the hands of the gaming concessionaires.
He clarified that the industry’s contribution could extend beyond Macau to include the whole of China.  However, such change would likely be driven by local operators’ hospitality and tourism elements, rather than gaming.
“[Mainland Chinese tourists] come here to learn new things, to see new things – like world-class hotels. As I said, there are around 30 million mainland tourists coming every year,” he explained, implying that Macau can give these tourists something to take back which could “contribute” to the mainland’s development.
His sentiments were echoed by MGM China’s CEO and executive director Grant Bowie, who said, “our mission is to make a positive difference to Macau and to China.”
“That’s a very big challenge. So how do we make a difference?” Bowie questioned. “Well, we start with ourselves […] we can turn Macau into a significant tourism destination [and contribute to China by] building a service sector here in Macau with skills [that are] transferable to China.”