GGRAsia – Macau operators meeting concession pledges: local govt

Macau operators meeting concession pledges: local govt

Dec 18, 2023 Newsdesk Latest News, Macau, Top of the deck

Macau’s six casino concessionaires have all made progress so far in implementing their various concession-related spending pledges as agreed with the city’s government.

So says Adriano Marques Ho, director of the city’s casino regulator, the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, as part of a written response to an enquiry filed in early November by local legislator Leong Sun Iok.

Mr Leong had asked specifically what performance indicators the government used in order to judge the concessionaires’ execution of their pledges, in particular their social responsabilities. Mr Ho’s response, published on Sunday, didn’t outline information on that.

But the gaming bureau director stated: “From [our] regular inspections, we found that the casino concessionaires have all made progress in implementing their various pledged investments in accordance to their respective investment execution plans approved [by the government].”

Mr Ho additionally said they had fulfilled their corporate social responsibilities in accordance with their concession bids and contracts.

He stated: “They have also carried out their responsibilities in terms of securing the employees’ [benefits], education and training; the hiring of those with disabilities and [those undergoing physical] rehabilitation; supporting local small and medium enterprises and the diversifying of local industries; [and in] supporting charities, scientific research, green initiatives, cultural and sports events, and volunteer services.”

During the 10-year span of their current concessions – which respectively began in January – by the time of September 30 each year, the Macau concessionaires are each required to submit to the local government for approval, an investment execution proposal for the next calendar year.

The concessionaires are also required to supply the authorities by March 31 yearly – as part of what the government terms an “assessment mechanism” – the casino operators’ own report on how they carried out their pledged investments in the previous calendar year.

Regulator Mr Ho also mentioned that the city’s Labour Affairs Bureau would for its part monitor the employment conditions of casino industry staff, and monitor the size of the sector’s workforce.