It has only taken Macao 25 years to place its name alongside the world's most successful cities.

The Macao Special Administrative Region, spanning a land area of 33.3 square kilometers, slightly smaller than Beijing Capital International Airport, proudly sits near the top global rankings for per capita gross domestic product, life expectancy of its residents, and the extent of its social welfare system.

These are among many of the city's achievements after its return to the motherland on Dec 20, 1999.Since then, Macao has developed into a world-class tourism destination with boutique hotels, attractive monuments, and a wide variety of cuisine appealing to almost every taste.

Through its history and heritage, the city is where East meets West, which has laid the foundation for Macao's role as a platform for exchanges between Chinese and Western culture.

In a quarter of a century, Macao has transformed from a humble port into a cultural and leisure hub.

This evolution stands as a testament to the industrious spirit of Macao's residents, and is a compelling endorsement of "one country, two systems" — which incorporates Macao into the nation's development blueprint and guarantees a high degree of autonomy inside its territory.