Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping met with Ho Hau Wah, Chief Executive of Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) in Macao on Saturday.

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (R, front) meets with Macao SAR Chief Executive Ho Hau Wah in Macao, south China, Jan. 10, 2009.[Ma Zhancheng/Xinhua]

It was his third visit to Macao since the SAR returned to the motherland, Xi said, and he had a deep impression every time on the city's profound changes and development.

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (2nd L) addresses upon his arrival in Macao, south China, Jan. 10, 2009. Xi Jinping arrived in Macao Saturday morning, kicking off a two-day inspection tour of the Special Administrative Region (SAR).[Ma Zhancheng/Xinhua]

It was not easy for Macao to maintain steady development amid the widening global financial crisis, which shows the advantages of the "One Country, Two Systems" principle and the administrative abilities of the SAR government, the Vice President said.

Ho said that at a time when the financial crisis hit, the central government put forward a series of policies to maintain Macao's stability and economic growth which will bolster the confidence of Macao people to overcome difficulties through the crisis.

Xi arrived in Macao on Saturday morning, kicking off a two-day inspection tour of the SAR. It was Xi's first visit to Macao since he became the Vice President in March 2008.

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (R) is greeted by Macao SAR Chief Executive Ho Hau Wah (L) upon his arrival in Macao, south China, Jan. 10, 2009. Xi Jinping arrived in Macao via the Gongbei cross-boundary checkpoint, which connects Macao with neighboring Chinese mainland city Zhuhai, here Saturday morning, kicking off a two-day inspection tour of the Special Administrative Region (SAR). [Liu Lianfen/Xinhua]

(Xinhua News Agency January 11, 2009)