A Brief History of Macau

Fishermen from Fujian and farmers from Guangdong were the first known settlers in Macau, when it was known as Ou Mun, or “trading gate”, because of its location at the mouth of the Pearl River downstream from Guangzhou (Canton). During ancient times port city was part of the Silk Road with ships loading here with silk for Rome.

Even after China ceased to be a world trade centre, Guangzhou prospered from seaborne business with the countries of Southeast Asia, so the local entrepreneurs welcomed the arrival of Portuguese merchant-explorers. They followed in the wake of Jorge Alvares, who landed in southern China in 1513, and set about finding suitable trading posts.

In the early 1550s the Portuguese reached Ou Mun, which the locals also called A Ma Gao, “place of A Ma”, in honour of the Goddess of Seafarers, whose temple stood at the entrance to the sheltered Inner Harbour. The Portuguese adopted the name, which gradually changes into the name Macau, and with the permission of Guangdong’s mandarins, established a city that within a short time had become a major entrepot for trade between China, Japan, India and Europe.

It also became the perfect crossroad for the meeting of East and West cultures. The Roman Catholic church sent some of its greatest missionaries to continue the work of St Francis Xavier, (who died nearby after making many converts in Japan). A Christian college was built, beside what is now today’s Ruins of St Paul’s, where students such as Matteo Ricci prepared for their work as Christian scholars at the Imperial Court in Beijing. Other churches were built, as well as fortresses, which gave the city an historical European appearance that distinguishes it to this day.

Portugal’s golden age in Asia faded as rivals like the Dutch and British took over their trade. However the Chinese chose to continue to do business through the Portuguese in Macau, so for over a century the British East India Company and others set up shop here in rented houses like the elegant Casa Garden. As Europe’s trade with China grew, the European merchants spent part of the year in Guangzhou, buying tea and Chinese luxuries at the bi-annual fairs, using Macau as a recreational retreat.

Following the Opium War in 1841, Hong Kong was established by Britain and most of the foreign merchants left Macau, which became a quaint, quiet backwater. Nevertheless it has continued to enjoy a leisurely multicultural existence and make daily, practical use of its historical buildings, in the process becoming a favourite stopover for international travellers, writers and artists.

In modern times Macau has developed industries such as textiles, electronics and toys, as well as building up an a world class tourist industry with a wide choice of hotels, resorts, sports facilities, restaurants and casinos. As in the past, Macau’s economy is closely linked to that of Hong Kong and Guangdong Province, in particular the Pearl River Delta region, which qualifies as one of Asia’s “little tigers”. Macau provides financial and banking services, staff training, transport and communications support.

Macau is a Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China since 20 December 1999, and, like Hong Kong, benefits from the principle of “one country, two systems”. The tiny SAR is growing in size – with more buildings on reclaimed land – and in the number and diversity of its attractions. The greatest of these continues to be Macau’s unique society, with communities from the East and West complementing each other, and the many people who come to visit.

Location and Area

The Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR) is a part of China’s territory. It is located on the Southeast coast of China to the western bank of the Pearl River Delta. Bordering on Guangdong Province, it locates 60km from Hong Kong and 145km from the city of Guangzhou.

The Macau Special Administrative Region has an area of 28.6 sq. km, comprised of the Macau Peninsula (with 9.3 sq. km and connected to Mainland China), the islands of Taipa (6.5 sq. km) and Coloane (7.6 sq. km) and the reclaimed area COTAI (5.2 sq. km). The three bridges connecting Macau to Taipa are Nobre de Carvalho (2.5 km long), the Friendship Bridge (4.5 km long) and Sai Van Bridge (2.2 km long). The longest one (Friendship Bridge) leads directly to Macau International Airport located on the Island of Taipa. The Sai Van Bridge, which was opened on 9 January 2005, is the first cable-stayed bridge in Macau. The double deck bridge has six lanes in the upper deck and four in the lower, which will open when a typhoon hits the city. The islands are connected by a causeway which is 2.2 km long.

Besides the Barrier Gate (Portas do Cerco), the visitor can access Mainland China through the COTAI Frontier Post. Immigration and Customs are located in the reclaimed area between the islands of Taipa and Coloane.

Local Reach and Knowledge — MacauHR is Macau’s original multi sector human resource solution, serving the gaming, hospitality and commercial sectors in Macau . Our experience and understanding of the local job market enables us to effectively target and attract the highest quality local candidates. MacauHR is the largest CV database in Macau, we are able to combine size and quality in delivering cost effective and targeted recruitment services.

Industry Focus — MacauHR has developed in-depth knowledge of Macau’s local job requirements. To meet the demands of the increasing development in entertainment, gaming and hospitality, MacauHR has developed unique services to meet the increasing demands for this job sector. MacauHR provides individualized attention focused on each client’s needs and tailors a best practices solution designed with our client’s job placements and human resource requirements in mind.

Total HR Solution — MacauHR sets itself apart with delivering a total HR solution, and customized service. MacauHR’s services include:

l MacauHR.com – MacauHR.com is the most visited online job site in Macau with over 5000 hits per day. MacauHR.com integrates every part of the recruitment process for enterprises, from job posting, through candidate application, screening and selection and job board management. MacauHR.com job boards are a cost efficient online solution for companies and recruitment agencies who can advertise job vacancies.  Job seekers can search for jobs and set up job alerts to receive relevant jobs by email. Job hunters can post their CVs to our searchable database where our MacauHR members can find them alongside recruitment agencies and companies who are hiring.

l MacauHR Recruitment – Is the leading provider of Permanent Recruitment, Temporary & Contract Recruitment, Outsourcing and Total Talent Management Solutions. From single placements to total outsourced solutions, MacauHR Recruitment helps organizations grow their businesses by getting the right people on board.

l MacauHR Training – MacauHR Training offers “Just-in-time” training solutions to field practitioners who intend to uplift their skills but cannot find the time to attend extensive training programs and is committed to providing excellent customer service by helping you and your company find, train and retain the right employees. We offer high quality training and human resource development products and services, and putting the customer first. MacauHR Training is the strategic partner to Macau’s education, training and skill development centers.

l MacauHR Corporate Services – At MacauHR Corporate Services we are known for exceeding the expectations of our customers. That is why today we offer our clients a full range of services. We understand that our client’s most valuable assets are their employees and that when these employees are transferred to Macau, information and employee relocation assistance is required. With this in mind we have built a comprehensive menu of services including visa services to Macau.

l LIFE! Macau’s only local lifestyle and career magazine – LIFE! Magazine is the principal free magazine about Macau’s vibrant lifestyle. LIFE! reaches more readers than any other free local magazine in Macau. Each month we publish over 30,000 magazines which are distributed through various channels in Macau. LIFE! is a Chinese language publication which not only provides articles about life in Macau, but also contains a well managed career section. Each edition delivers specific micro-local stories about our community. LIFE! is a local upscale community-based publication.

MacauHR’s approach to Macau’s gaming and hospitality organizations is to provide access to best practices when requiring a total human resources solution. MacauHR’s dynamic services provide human resource managers with the quantitative and qualitative service necessary to evaluate engagement levels of their local workforce.

To learn more or partner with MacauHR, contact us at +853 2826 2445 or via email at info@macauhr.com