The University of Macau (UM) and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law Regional Centre for Asia and the Pacific (UNCITRAL RCAP) 17 December 2021 held a conference titled ‘Conquering the COVID: Enhancing Economic Recovery Through Harmonisation of Law Governing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)’, which involved both in-person and virtual elements.
This is the ninth annual conference co-organised by the UNCITRAL RCAP and UM. Since 2014, the two institutions have successfully held seven high-level international conferences and one international legal symposium. During the event, experts and scholars from different countries and regions, including South Korea, Japan, mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macao, gave keynote speeches on five contemporary issues related to the harmonisation of law governing MSMEs, namely simplification of business registration and establishment procedures for MSMEs, financial support for MSMEs and those facing insolvency, access to credit and sustainable finance for MSMEs, promotion of viable dispute resolution mechanisms for MSMEs, and legal developments facilitating the establishment and successful operation of MSMEs.
Participants also discussed UNCITRAL’s continued efforts on these matters, issues arising from UNCITRAL texts, as well as issues in national laws and legal practice related to the effective establishment and governance of MSMEs. As a highlight of the programme, the conference included a special session on the creation of a congenial legal environment for MSMEs in special economic zones through legal harmonisation. Many participants expressed their views on the new opportunities brought by the Guangdong-Macao In-depth Cooperation Zone for MSMEs in Macao. The Q&A session focused on international trade and commercial law in transition, as well as challenges facing MSMEs since the pandemic.
Guests attending the opening ceremony included Athita Komindr, head of the UNCITRAL RCAP; Tong Io Cheng, dean of the Faculty of Law (FLL) of UM; Fan Mingchao, executive vice-president of Shanghai Arbitration Commission (China); Rosita Vong Sok Hei, secretary general of the World Trade Center Macau Arbitration Center; Lee Kam Iut, secretary general of the Macau Lawyers Association; Rostam J Neuwirth, head of the Department of Global Legal Studies in the FLL; and Muruga Perumal Ramaswamy, associate professor in the FLL. The conference was supported by the Shanghai Arbitration Commission and the World Trade Center Macau Arbitration Center.
Source: Faculty of Law, University of Macau
