December 15, 2021 – Over the years, Galaxy Entertainment Group (“GEG”) has been actively supporting the Macau SAR Government’s “Macau Thrives on Education” and “Building Macau through Talent Training” policies by fostering local young people’s comprehensive development through the launch of various initiatives. Since 2011, GEG has been co-organizing the GEG Youth Achievement Program (“YAP”) with the Macau Management Association (“MMA”) and for 10 consecutive years, the YAP has provided numerous training and career enhancement opportunities for over 3,000 participants aged 18 to 29. Today, GEG held the 10th YAP Award Presentation and the 11th YAP Launch Ceremony at the Banyan Ballroom of Banyan Tree Macau, Galaxy Macau™ to recognize the outstanding performance of the participants of the 10th YAP and welcome the new intake.

Ms. Cheung Wai, Head of the Vocational Training Department of the Labor Affairs Bureau of the Macau SAR Government; Mr. Chan Iok Wai, Head of the Department of Students of the Education and Youth Development Bureau of the Macau SAR Government; Mr. Zhao Su, Assistant to the Economic Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macau SAR; Mr. Tommy Lau, Council Chairman of MMA; Mr. Alex Mok, Council Vice Chairman of MMA; Mr. Raymond Bao, Council Vice Chairman and Honorary Treasurer of MMA; Ms. Simone Ho and Mr. Cheang Kin Lap Keegan, Council Vice Chairmen of MMA; Mr. Philip Cheng, Director of GEG; Ms. Eileen Lui, Group Director of Human Resources and Administration of GEG; Mr. Kevin Kelley, Chief Operating Officer – Macau of GEG, officiated at the ceremony.

In his speech, Mr. Tommy Lau, Council Chairman of MMA said, “In September, the Central Government launched its Plans for the Development of the Guangdong-Macao Intensive Cooperation Zone in Hengqin. With the strong support of the country, our future is full of hopes and opportunities. I believe that the YAP offers the new generation with a fantastic platform to thrive, achieve personal growth, and build the capacity needed to succeed in their future career.” Mr. Philip Cheng, Director of GEG, said in his speech, “GEG believes that ‘education engenders a strong country’, and over the years, GEG has earmarked considerable resources to support and organize different activities and exchange programs for youths. Through the YAP, GEG hopes to equip our young people with the skills needed to seize the opportunities brought by the developments of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Guangdong-Macao Intensive Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, and to facilitate their participation in the country’s national development initiatives.”

During the ceremony, GEG and MMA representatives presented a number of awards to the outstanding participants, including the champion and first and second runners-ups of the Final Competition. This year’s Final Competition focused on national development, and to strengthen the participants’ understanding of the Guangdong-Macao Intensive Cooperation Zone in Hengqin as well as the overall development strategy of the country, the participants were taken for a visit to Hengqin, and also participated in a simulated entrepreneurship competition that mimicked the setting of Inno Valley Hengqin. The team “TutorNest” won the champion in the Final Competition with their innovative business plan of a tutorial matching app. Meanwhile, the ceremony also included a 10 years’ review and sharing by MMA’s Senior Instructor, Dr. Timothy Lam, who encouraged the participants to uphold the YAP spirit and continue to make personal breakthroughs.

 The 10th YAP continued to promote self-awareness, community care and career development by providing participants with a series of diversified trainings, activities and lectures such as the “GEG Online Career Talk: Strong in Face of Adversity”, the “YAP Social Networking Series” and the “YAP Financial Independence Workshops”. Professionals were also invited to interact with the participants with aims of enhancing their specialized knowledge and skills. To nurture the patriotism of the participants and provide them a more thorough understanding of Chinese history and culture, the 10th YAP also included a visit to the “Base of the Education of Love for Motherland and for Macau for Youth People”. In addition, a new comic competition was also included to motivate the public to get vaccinated and help Macau establish herd immunity. Centering on the emerging trends of “Big Health” and “Technology”, the 11th YAP will reinforce the health literacy and innovative thinking of local youth and equip them for the future challenges.

Over the years, GEG has facilitated youth development through hosting of a variety of talent cultivation schemes and academic competitions aiming at helping young people to unleash their potential and broaden their horizons, including title-sponsoring the “GEG Macau Cup – Youth National Education Competition” for 13 consecutive years with over 100,000 participants; and title-sponsoring the “GEG Presents: Popular Science Activities in Schools on Chinese Drones” since 2019 to promote the country’s edge-cutting drone technology to 30 local schools. In the future, GEG will continue to support the Macau SAR Government’s policy on talent development and assist Macau in cultivating its future talents.