MICE | 650 delegates attend travel meet in Macau

The 43rd National Congress of the Portuguese Association of Travel and Tourism Agencies (APAVT) will be held in Macau between November 23 and 27. Around 650 delegates are registered and several influential speakers are lined-up for the event, which kicks off with an opening ceremony on the morning of November 23, at the Macau Tower Convention and Entertainment Centre. The Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Alexis Tam, along with the Secretary of State for Tourism of Portugal, Ana Mendes Godinho, and APAVT President, Pedro Costa Ferreira, will speak at the opening of the event. The number of registrations to the event is a record high in the recent history of the congress, according to the past records of APAVT.

Under the theme “Tourism: In the East, all new!” the congress will gather hundreds of Portuguese professionals from diverse range of tourism activities to have a closer look at recent issues in the tourism industry in Portugal and to examine the possibilities of visitor exchanges with Macau and nearby regions.

Considered the major Portuguese tourism forum, this year’s congress program congress will include a debate between former President of the Assembly of the Republic and past Foreign Affairs Minister of Portugal Jaime Gama, and political analyst and entrepreneur Jaime Nogueira Pinto, moderated by journalist José Manuel Fernandes. The three figures take part in a weekly debate in Portugal titled “Conversas à Quinta.”

The list of speakers also includes former Portuguese Minister for Economy and consultant Augusto Mateus, executive and current administrator of TAP Air Portugal Diogo Lacerda Machado, academic and entrepreneur Paulo Amaral, international consultant Jeff Archambault, and Travelport managing director for Greater China Region, Ming Foong, among others.

The working sessions of the congress will focus on themes such as Portugal’s relations with the East, opportunities brought to tourism by digital transformation and the role of tourism in the reinvention of the economic growth model in Portugal, among other topics. A study on travel agencies and their benefit to the Portuguese economy will also be presented during the congress.

One of the highlights of the congress, which is being held in Macau for the fifth time, second after the establishment of the MSAR, is a workshop and networking session to boost contacts and business opportunities in tourism between China and Portugal.