High-Level Meeting cum First Plenary Session of Hong Kong/Zhejiang Co-operation Conference held in Hangzhou (with photos)
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Officials of the HKSAR Government that attended the meeting-cum-plenary included the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki; the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Erick Tsang Kwok-wai; the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau; the Secretary for Housing, Ms Winnie Ho; the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong; the Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs, Miss Alice Mak; and the Director of the Chief Executive's Office, Ms Carol Yip.
Hong Kong and Zhejiang reached a consensus on the following 13 co-operation areas at the meeting-cum-plenary:
Joint pursuit of the Belt and Road development and business investment
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Strengthen co-operation on the Belt and Road Initiative between the two places. Encourage Zhejiang enterprises to actively participate in the Belt and Road Summit held in Hong Kong. Encourage Zhejiang enterprises to actively participate in relevant exchange and interface sessions organised by relevant authorities in Hong Kong.
Promote the co-operation between Hong Kong and Zhejiang in the field of professional services. Support the introduction of Hong Kong management consulting, accounting, design, legal and dispute resolution service agencies.
Continue to actively promote collaboration and exchanges on intellectual property between the two places through publicity initiatives and seminars.
Finance
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Support Zhejiang Province in collaborating with the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited and relevant securities institutions to organise and conduct business training to address enterprises' inquiries regarding listing in Hong Kong.
Encourage enterprises in Zhejiang Province and financial institutions in Hong Kong to engage in exchanges and co-operation.
Innovation and technology
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Jointly promote co-operation in technology research and development between Hong Kong and Zhejiang. Support higher education institutions, research institutes and enterprises in Hong Kong and Zhejiang to jointly launch research initiatives to achieve breakthroughs in core technologies in key fields, develop strategic emerging industries, and foster the development of future industries.
Actively establish a two-way sci-tech financial investment and financing channel, and actively support Zhejiang's high-tech enterprises in listing and raising funds, issuing local and foreign currency bonds in Hong Kong, etc.
Encourage and support technology entities in Hong Kong and Zhejiang to take the lead in the establishment of technology co-operation platforms, and set up research and development centres, etc.
Aviation
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Increase the frequency of flights between Hong Kong and the three airports in Hangzhou, Ningbo and Wenzhou in accordance with the market situation.
Enhance the exchange of advanced airport management experience between airport personnel in Hong Kong and Zhejiang.
Legal and dispute resolution
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Continue to proactively support law firms of the two places to establish partnership associations and set up branches in each other's places.
Promote co-operation between the arbitral institutions of the two places in the arbitration of civil and commercial disputes in the areas of international trade, investment, maritime commerce, etc.
Support and promote the expansion of exchange platforms for legal, arbitration, mediation, and other professional services between the two places.
Cultural exchange and tourism
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Strengthen cultural and tourism exchanges between the two places.
Strengthen the exchanges and collaboration between the museums and arts and cultural institutions of Hong Kong and Zhejiang, and jointly organise international exhibitions.
Education
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Promote the development of the Zhejiang-Hong Kong Vocational Education Alliance. Effectively carry out visits to Zhejiang for Mainland study tours of the senior secondary subject of Citizenship and Social Development and Mainland study tours for teachers.
Facilitate more schools in the two places in forming sister school pairs for conducting exchange activities in diverse forms.
Encourage higher education institutions in Zhejiang Province to further deepen co-operation with higher education institutions in Hong Kong and carry out various forms of collaborative projects, such as joint scientific research, academic seminars, and teacher-student exchanges.
Youth development
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Actively explore the introduction of a quality internship programme in Zhejiang under the Thematic Youth Internship Programmes to the Mainland.
Support Hong Kong youths to participate in short-term experiential programmes at innovation and entrepreneurial bases in Zhejiang.
Encourage and support Hong Kong youth entrepreneurial teams funded under the Youth Development Fund of the Government of the HKSAR to expand their businesses to Zhejiang.
Health and Chinese medicine
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Strengthen exchanges and co-operation between the two sides in areas such as clinical talents, primary healthcare and hospital management.
Support Hong Kong service providers to develop Hong Kong-Zhejiang joint ventures, co-operative medical institutions and wholly owned medical institutions in accordance with the law.
Expedite academic and talent exchanges in Chinese medicine between the two places, and strengthen co-operation in the area of international standardisation of Chinese medicine.
Environmental protection
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Promote the implementation of the co-operation agreement signed between the Radiation Monitoring Technical Center of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment and the Hong Kong Observatory. Support technical staff of both sides in conducting regular technical discussions.
Strengthen technical exchanges and co-operation in the field of carbon monitoring.
Strengthen exchanges and discussions between Hong Kong and Zhejiang in areas such as environmental protection-related industry and technological innovation.
Housing
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The two parties will engage in collaborative exchanges encompassing innovative housing technologies, intelligent construction, resource conservation, as well as low-carbon and emission-reduction initiatives.
The two parties will strengthen collaboration in innovative housing technologies, smart estate management, and the development of harmonious communities through reciprocal visits and professional training exchanges.
Talent and civil service exchange
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Strengthen communication and connections with renowned schools in Hong Kong.
Continue to promote and deepen exchanges between civil servants from both sides, and launch a new round of the exchange programme under the guidance of the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee.
Facilitation measures for Hong Kong people on the Mainland
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Fully implement the policies and measures introduced by the relevant Central Government departments to facilitate the development of Hong Kong and Macao residents on the Mainland, and facilitate Hong Kong people studying, working and living in Zhejiang.
Explore the expansion of the scope of application of the Mainland Travel Permits for Hong Kong and Macao Residents in various government and public services in Zhejiang.
Co-operation memorandum signing ceremony
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At the meeting-cum-plenary, the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, and Vice Governor of the Zhejiang Provincial People's Government Mr Lu Shan, signed the "Hong Kong/Zhejiang Co-operation Conference Mechanism" and the "Co-operation Memorandum of the High-Level Meeting cum First Plenary Session of the Hong Kong/Zhejiang Co-operation Conference". The documents (Chinese only) are in Annex 1 and Annex 2.
In addition, four co-operation agreements were signed by government departments and statutory bodies of the two places:
(i) Memorandum of Understanding on Enhancing Zhejiang/Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Co-operation;
(ii) Letter of Intent on Strengthening Exchanges and Co-operation in Innovative Housing Technologies, Smart Estate Management and Well-being Community;
(iii) Memorandum of Understanding on Promoting High-Quality Economic and Trade Co-operation; and
(iv) Memorandum of Understanding on Jointly Promoting Youth Development Co-operation.
The co-operation agreements (i), (ii) and (iv) signed by the government departments of the two places (Chinese only) are in Annexes 3 to 5.
Ends/Thursday, April 24, 2025
Issued at HKT 18:32
Issued at HKT 18:32
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