President Xi Jinping visited the Macau University of Science and Technology on Thursday morning on the second day of his trip marking the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the SAR.

Xi’s motorcade arrived at the university before 10am amid tight security.

The president toured two state-level laboratories at the university, one in traditional Chinese medicine and the other in lunar and planetary science.

He had exchanges with faculty, researchers and students, according to Xinhua News Agency.

University president Joseph Lee quoted Xi as saying Macau could work with the mainland in areas such as Chinese medicine.

"[Xi] believes the research for Chinese medicine should be combined with the latest biomedicine to lead the world, and that Chinese medicine will take up a very important position in the world," Lee said.

He added the president noted the achievements of the Macau Science 1, a low-latitude satellite constellation with high-precision geomagnetic field measurements.

Kong Chi-meng, Macau's director of education and youth development, said Xi was satisfied with the development of higher education in the SAR and praised the territory's patriotic education.

The president also visited the Guangdong-Macau In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin in the morning.

Xi had warm exchanges with residents living and starting businesses in the cooperation zone, and with people involved in the zone's planning, construction, management and services, according to Xinhua.

He is expected to visit other places in Macau this afternoon and attend a gala dinner and a variety show in the evening.

Also on Thursday morning, a museum near the Ruínas de São Paulo welcomed First Lady Peng Liyuan.

Peng spent around an hour at the museum and met a group of pupils.

"[Peng] urged the kids to study history and culture well, so that they could better understand their own place and offer help in the future," said Macau's culture chief Leong Wai-man.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Chief Executive John Lee will lead a delegation to Macau to attend the celebration events today.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan and Justice Secretary Paul Lam will be among those joining Lee on the visit.
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Last updated: 2024-12-19 HKT 16:13