Urban Development of Macao:Challenges and Opportunities

This paper reviews the socio-economic development and the spatial evolution patterns of Macao. It argues that urbanization and intense land development have posed three challenges to Macao's future development pathway, namely, limited provision of resource, lack of diversification ofindustries, and incomplete planning legislation. The General Agreement on the Cooperation between Guangdong and Macao signed in 2003 represents a strong policy incentive that offered a comprehensive institutional framework to promote economic integration. The Agreement is conducive to achieving economic development through proposing dynamic and diversified economic activities, which will also benefit tourism. The development of Hengqin will serve as a test bed for furthering the implementation of "one country, two systems" constitutional principle, which will also improve the existing regional cooperation mechanisms. A comprehensive urban planning system should be established to avoid marginalization in regional development. Better reallocation of resources and prevention of over-competition in the market are two critical components in achieving sustainable development of Macao.