EXPLORING THE DUAL EDGES OF MACAO’S ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION A STUDY OF THE STRENGTHS AND LIMITATIONS OF THE POLICY

ABSTRACT

THIS DISSERTATION EXPLORES THE STRATEGIES FOR DEVELOPING A SMART TOURISM CITY IN THE BACKGROUND OF MACAO SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION (SAR) AND THE PERCEPTIONS OF DIFFERENT EXPERTS IN MACAO. AWARED THAT THE MACAO GOVERNMENT AIMS TO EXPEDITE THE DEVELOPMENT OF A LIVABLE, SMART, AND GREEN MACAO AND REQUIRES SMART TECHNOLOGY TO BE APPLIED TO UPGRADE THE PEOPLE’S LIVELIHOOD. THIS IS A LONG-TERM AMBITION TO ACHIEVE AND WHETHER SUCCESS REMAINS UNCERTAIN. THROUGH LITERATURE REVIEW, UNDERSTOOD THAT THE TRADITIONAL TOURISM INDUSTRY MUST BE TRANSFORMED AND INNOVATED TO ENHANCE COMPETITION SINCE THE 90S. AND SMART TOURISM CITIES PROVIDE ENHANCED TOURISTS’ EXPERIENCE AND RESIDENTS’ BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE. ALTHOUGH PRIOR RESEARCH HAVE STUDIED THE TOURIST BEHAVIOR OF SMART TOURISM CONTENTS OR EVALUTATED STRATEGIC PLANS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A SMART TOURISM CITY, THERE IS NO PREVIOUS RESEARCH EXPLORED ON THE TOPIC.  THEREFORE, THIS DISSERTATION THROUGH QUALITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS INCLUDING ON-SITE OBSERVATIONS, ANALYZING GOVERNMENT-RELEASED DOCUMENTS AND INTERVIEWING RELEVANT EXPERTS. THE FINDINGS PRESENT THE SEVEN COMPONENTS OF THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK, INCLUDING PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURES, TECHNOLOGY APPLICATIONS, EXPERIENCE SHARING, BIG DATA, BUSINESS CO-CREATION, TECHNICAL PROFESSIONALS, AND CYBER SECURITY, ARE STRONGLY SUPPORT THE SMART TOURISM CITY DEVELOPMENT IN MACAO. PROVIDE A CLEAR UNDERSTANDING FOR THE RELEVANT STAKEHOLDERS TO PRACTICE IN A SMART TOURISM CITY CONTEXT. IN ADDITION, FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF EXPERTS, THE KEY FOR SUCCESSFULLY DEVELOP MACAO AS A SMART TOURISM CITY IS THAT SHOULD APPLY ‘GOVERNMENT-LED, MULTI-PARTY PARTICIPATION, AND MARKETING OPERATION’ IN EVERY COMPONENT OF THE FRAMEWORK. THE KEY FOR SUCCESS DEPENDS ON ALL STAKEHOLDERS ACTIVELY PARTICIPAE THE ACTIVITIES. FOUR RECOMMONDATIONS ALSO PRESENT AT THE END OF THIS DISSEARTATION. PROSPECTS THE DEVELOPMENT OF SMART TOURISM CITY IN MACAO CAN ENHANCE BOTH THE QUALITY OF TOURISTS’ EXPERIENCE AND RESIDENTS’ LIFE AS WELL AS DRIVEN THE LONG-TERM ECONOMIC GROWTH SUSTAINABLY