The Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region publishes the 2024 Policy Address (with full text)

The Zhitong Finance App learned that on October 16, the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Li Jiachao, published the “Chief Executive 2024 Policy Address”. He mentioned that it will continue to optimize the “interconnection” mechanism, strengthen the position of the world's largest offshore RMB business hub, and help internationalize the RMB. The main measures include continuing to upgrade infrastructure, upgrading the central settlement system for debt instruments to facilitate international investors to settle various types of assets in different currencies; improving the infrastructure of the fixed income market, such as establishing a central clearing system for repurchase transactions denominated in RMB, making treasury bonds issued in Hong Kong more popular as collateral in the offshore market.

Li Jiachao said that efforts will be made to increase offshore RMB liquidity, make good use of currency swap agreements between the Special Administrative Region and the country, so that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) can better support Hong Kong's economic and trade development; enhance the nighttime cross-border service capabilities of the Hong Kong RMB instant payment clearing system to facilitate global settlement in the offshore RMB market; and explore the provision of more diversified offshore RMB financing channels.

He pointed out that Hong Kong's gold imports and exports rank among the highest in the world. Geopolitics are becoming increasingly complex, highlighting Hong Kong's security and stable environmental advantages, attracting international gold to be stored in Hong Kong, promoting gold trading, clearing and delivery, and developing Hong Kong as a gold trading center, driving the development of related industrial chains such as investment transactions, derivatives, insurance, warehousing, trade and logistics services. The Hong Kong Government will promote the construction of world-class gold storage facilities, expand the storage and delivery of real funds by users and investors in Hong Kong, drive derivative financial services such as collateral and borrowing, and create new growth points for the financial industry.

The Hong Kong Financial Services and Treasury Council (Treasury Bureau) will set up a team to carry out the work of establishing an international gold trading centre, including strengthening trading mechanisms and regulatory frameworks, promoting cutting-edge fintech applications, and discussing the inclusion of gold products in “connectivity” with the Mainland.

The Hong Kong Government will set up a “Low Altitude Economy Development Working Group”, headed by the Deputy Secretary for Finance, to formulate development strategies and cross-departmental action plans, start with application projects, set specific application sites to promote projects, formulate regulations and construction systems, and study and deploy infrastructure equipment and networks.

At the same time, Hong Kong will optimize the “New Capital Investor Entry Scheme” — from now on, investment in residential properties is permitted. The transaction price of such property must be HK$50 million or more, and the total investment limit for investing in real estate is HK$10 million. Also, starting from March 1 next year, investments made through an eligible private company wholly owned by the applicant can be included in the eligible investment amount.

In addition, it also mentioned developing new overseas capital — implementing exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that track the Hong Kong stock index to be listed in the Middle East to absorb local capital to allocate Hong Kong stocks; seeking corporate listing — making good use of the advantages of “connectivity” with the mainland market to attract international companies to go public in Hong Kong, and at the same time promote the listing of large mainland enterprises in Hong Kong to achieve more iconic public offerings (IPOs) in the short term;

The Hong Kong Government will continue to promote innovative financial services such as central bank digital currency, mobile payments, virtual banking, virtual insurance and virtual asset transactions. The Hong Kong Treasury Bureau will issue a policy declaration explaining the policy position and policy on the application of artificial intelligence in financial markets.

The full text of the report is as follows:

I. Reform, change, governance and prosperity

1. This is my third Policy Address.

2. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee reviewed and passed the “Decision of the CPC Central Committee on Further Comprehensive Deepening Reforms and Promoting Chinese-style Modernization”, which states that it is necessary to give full play to the advantages of the “one country, two systems” system, consolidate and enhance Hong Kong's status as an international financial, shipping and trade center, support Hong Kong to build a highland gathering place for high-end international talents, improve the mechanism for Hong Kong to play a better role in opening up the country to the outside world; deepen cooperation in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area; and strengthen the interface of rules and mechanisms.

3. More than two years ago, when I was running for election, I proposed “we must have a spirit of change” and “further innovation”, establish a government “aiming for results”, set up performance indicators to reform government culture, set up care teams to strengthen regional services, launch an “Early Upstairs Plan” to help citizens shorten waiting time for public housing, and proposed a series of innovative measures to help middle school students in rural housing address intergenerational poverty. I believe in continuous progress and self-innovation; I believe in understanding change, seeking change, maintaining integrity and innovating, and responding flexibly to challenges and opportunities.

4. Regarding system reform, my philosophy is: what is lacking in the system but needs to be established; those that are seriously lacking must be rectified; those that have bottlenecks, shortcomings, or obstacles must be broken through and removed; and those that need to be consolidated must be strengthened and improved. In the reform process, it is necessary to determine which ones need to be established from scratch, which ones need to be operated to fix the chaos, and which ones need to be fixed. When reforming, we must focus on a systemic concept, and grasp the relationships between the overall and local, current and long-term, macro and micro levels. Successful experiences in other places can be drawn upon, but since the foundation and system may be different, they cannot be blindly copied. The reform plan should be adapted to the time and local conditions.

5. Since I took office, I have been carrying out reforms based on this philosophy.

6. In terms of the practical construction of “one country, two systems,” complete the constitutional responsibility of local legislation under Article 23 of the Basic Law; reshape district councils to implement the “patriots rule Hong Kong” principle system; complete legislation so that expired land deeds can be easily and automatically renewed for 50 years in an orderly manner, beyond 2047, reflecting the long-term persistence of “one country, two systems”.

7. In terms of government governance, reform the government structure system, reset the functions of the policy bureau, and increase the number from 13 to 15 bureaus; add three deputy directors to strengthen coordination of cross-agency work; set up special leadership classes for deputy directors to strengthen execution capabilities; reform government culture and set performance indicators with results as the goal; and establish a “whole-government mobilization” mechanism to handle large-scale accidents, etc.

8. In terms of economic development, Breakthrough established Hong Kong Investment Management Co., Ltd., using government funds to promote industrial and economic development; develop the “Eight Major Centers”; develop the Northern Metropolitan Area (Beidu) in an “industry-oriented” manner; set up a “Talent Service Office” to grab talents, “introduce key enterprise offices” to grab enterprises; and build a regional university education hub.

9. In terms of people's livelihood, promote the reform of the medical system, establish a system for independent approval of pharmaceutical devices; establish a system for importing medical personnel to improve the long-term shortage of manpower in public health care; innovatively introduce “simple public housing” to fill the short-term gap in public housing supply; establish a “working group to solve the housing problem”; establish a “annual inspection” minimum wage guarantee system; and implement a “three-tunnel diversion”, etc.

10. Reforms can only be carried out; they are not finished. Over the past two years, my team and I have always been citizen-centered, with economic construction as the main axis to develop and improve people's livelihood. This year's “Policy Address” will further deepen reforms and explore new growth points; for example, establishing an international gold trading market; vigorously promoting the development of the shipping service industry with a high value-added component of shipping; building a commodity trading circle and establishing an internationally recognized metal warehouse; formulating a “Hetao Port Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park Development Program” to open up a testing ground for policy and system innovation; and setting up a working group to develop a low-altitude economy.

11. This year's “Policy Address” continues to implement the “Four Points of Hope” of President Xi Jinping's important speech on July 1st, and explains ideas and development goals, key measures, and performance indicators for reforms and changes; I also formulated an addendum to the “Policy Address” detailing other measures and related matters.

2. Steady and far-reaching implementation of “one country, two systems” to strengthen the government governance system

(1) Fully and accurately implement the “one country, two systems” policy

Give full play to the advantages of the “one country, two systems” system

12. The advantages of the “one country, two systems” system are endless. As Hong Kong responds to the epidemic, overcomes economic difficulties, and is seeking development opportunities, the central government has always cared about Hong Kong and introduced a number of measures to benefit Hong Kong to support Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability in many ways.

13. Under “one country, two systems,” Hong Kong takes “one country” as its foundation, enjoys the benefits of “two systems”, and can contribute to the country's needs. Hong Kong enjoys national advantages as well as international advantages, which include national policies, guarantees and opportunities. At the same time, Hong Kong has the status of a fully open international city. It follows a capitalist system, free circulation of capital, personnel, and information, uses common law, and has the Special Administrative Region's own legislation and judicial system, laws, taxation, monetary and financial systems. It is a separate customs area and an international metropolis.

14. We will continue to fully, accurately and unswervingly implement the principles of “one country, two systems”, “Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong” and a high degree of autonomy, give full play to the advantages of the “one country, two systems” system, maintain Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability, and contribute to building a strong nation and achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Safeguarding national security

15. Security and development are the two wings of the bird. Development must have a safe social environment. In March of this year, the Special Administrative Region completed the constitutional responsibility and historical mission of local legislation under Article 23 of the Basic Law. The newly enacted “Safeguarding National Security Regulations” and the “Hong Kong National Security Law” are perfectly integrated, compatible and complementary, improving the legal system and implementation mechanism for safeguarding national security. However, national security risks can come suddenly; we must not take them lightly; we must remain vigilant.

16. Public officials are duty-bound to maintain national security. Section 8 (3) (a) of the Safeguarding of National Security Ordinance stipulates that any function conferred on any person by the laws of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall be understood to include responsibility for maintaining national security; section 114 requires public officials to assist in the work of safeguarding national security. Policy bureaus and departments are required to review their codes, guidelines and procedures to ensure compliance with the above requirements.

17. Consciously safeguarding national security is paramount. The National Security Exhibition Hall opened in August this year and is very popular with the public. We will train local mentors to promote it in the community. Next year, in conjunction with the 10th “National Safety Education Day”, the exhibition hall will launch a special exhibition. The Education Bureau will also update the National Security Education Curriculum Framework.

Promoting patriotism education

18. The “Patriotism Education Working Group” has formulated promotion strategies and measures to promote more activities so that patriotism can take root in society. Next year marks the 80th anniversary of victory in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. The government will hold commemorative events to enhance patriotism. The Education Bureau will promote the “Heart for Home Country 3.0” cross-school and cross-sector activities, continue to strengthen education on Chinese history and national geography in primary and secondary schools, and increase the elements of patriotic history through exchanges in the Mainland.

Promoting Chinese culture

19. The “Office for Promoting Chinese Culture”, established in April this year, makes every effort to promote Chinese culture, including preparing a museum introducing the country's development and achievements and a new “Chinese Culture Experience Center”, and continuing the “Chinese Culture Festival” and a series of exhibitions on China's general history.

(2) Strengthening the government governance system

20. Since taking office, the current administration has promoted a number of cross-policy coordination system reforms, as well as government governance culture reforms, and strengthened the government governance system. In addition to adding three deputy directors to strengthen leadership and coordinate cross-agency work, I have set targets for designated projects, reviewed progress and effectiveness, established a government culture of “aiming for results”, doing practical things, and doing things, and updated the “Civil Service Code” to clarify the basic beliefs and standards of conduct that civil servants must hold, and establish a “whole-government mobilization” system to strengthen adaptability, etc. The government will further deepen reforms and continue to strengthen the government governance system.

Strengthen cross-policy coordination system mechanisms

21. We will further strengthen leadership and cross-policy coordination mechanisms, give full play to the leadership and coordination functions of the Director and Deputy Director General, and establish:

(i) “Education, Technology and Talent Committee” — chaired by the Chief Secretary for Administration, with members including the Secretary for Education, the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, and the Secretary for Labour and Welfare to promote the integrated development of education technology talents, expand connectivity and coordination, promote the collaborative development of talent development, talent acquisition and technology, and promote the gathering of high-end international talents in Hong Kong;

(ii) “Low-altitude Economy Development Working Group” — headed by the Deputy Secretary for Finance, to launch application projects, formulate low-altitude economic development strategies and action plans, promote regulatory reforms and deploy infrastructure;

(iii) “Tourism Hotspot Development Working Group” — headed by the Deputy Secretary for Administration, to strengthen cross-departmental coordination and combine social forces to discover and build popular and attractive tourism hotspots in the region; and

(iv) “Working Group on Promoting the Silver Hair Economy” — headed by the Deputy Secretary for Administration, formulates measures to accelerate the development of the silver hair industry and meet the living needs of the elderly.

Strengthening civil servants' ability to govern

Strengthening civil service management

22. In terms of establishing a system of rewards and punishments, the work of the past two years has included setting up the Chief Executive's commendation list, simplifying the mechanism to retire civil servants who continue to perform poorly, and strengthening the speed and intensity of handling disciplinary cases. We will review the Civil Service (Management) Order and the Civil Service (Discipline) Regulations to further optimize the civil service discipline mechanism, and consult the Civil Service Recruitment Commission on the preliminary plan next year.

Study national affairs and international training

23. Civil servants must fully grasp the country's governance philosophy and strategies. The Government will organize research and training on the central government's major policies, reports, etc., and arrange for middle- and senior management personnel to receive training at well-known universities in the mainland and overseas to cultivate a national and international perspective.

24. With the support of the central government, the SAR government will continue to send personnel to work in different United Nations offices through specific plans.

Hong Kong and the Mainland “Civil Service Exchange Program”

25. The Government will launch a two-way civil service exchange program with mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area and Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Wuhan and Hangzhou.

Launched the “Government Governance Talent Development Program”

26. The Civil Service College will launch the “Government Governance Talent Development Program” to strengthen the governance capacity of leaders. The College will also strengthen internal research and training capacity building.

Digital transformation of public service

27. The “Digital Policy Office” will make every effort to consolidate the foundation of government and public agencies' information systems, and take the lead in implementing locally developed generative artificial intelligence document support applications after trial by government departments. About 20 digital government and smart city solutions will be launched this year, including the use of blockchain technology to issue electronic certificates for designated civil service examinations and fire department licenses, and the use of artificial intelligence to handle public inquiries.

Improve the security of critical infrastructure computer systems

28. The Government will set out the responsibilities of critical infrastructure operators to protect their computer systems, strengthen their ability to withstand cybersecurity challenges, and submit draft regulations within this year.

III. Consolidate and enhance the status of an international financial, shipping and trade center

29. The development of international financial, shipping and trade centers play a mutually leading role. In addition to expanding and strengthening our existing business, we will establish new growth points, using the construction of a commodity trading ecosystem as an entry point, gathering relevant enterprises to settle in Hong Kong as an operation center for international commodity trading, warehousing and delivery, shipping logistics, risk management, etc., seize opportunities, develop markets such as international gold, non-ferrous metals and green transportation, and further promote the collaborative development of international finance, shipping and trade centers.

30. Hong Kong's gold import and export volume ranks among the highest in the world. Today's geopolitical complexity highlights the advantages of a safe and stable environment in Hong Kong, attracting investors to store gold in Hong Kong and promoting gold trading, clearing and delivery. We will make full use of the mechanisms and supporting advantages of international financial centers to build an international gold trading center.

31. The Government will promote the establishment of authorized warehouses by international commodity exchanges in Hong Kong, and adopt tax incentives and other measures to attract enterprises to settle in Hong Kong and promote commodity storage and trade volume.

32. Global air and sea transportation is developing greener. The government will cultivate the development of sustainable aviation fuel and green marine fuel industries, promote the construction of fuel filling centers, and seize financial, trade and shipping development opportunities for new energy sources.

(1) International Finance Center

33. Hong Kong is an international financial center, ranked third in the world and ranked first in the investment environment. The Government will continue to reform to consolidate and enhance Hong Kong's status as an international financial center.

Deepen “connectivity” to enrich offshore RMB business

34. We will continue to optimize the “connectivity” mechanism, strengthen our position as the world's largest offshore RMB business hub, and help internationalize the RMB. The main measures include continuing to upgrade infrastructure, upgrading the central settlement system for debt instruments to facilitate international investors to settle various types of assets in different currencies; improving the infrastructure of the fixed income market, such as establishing a central clearing system for renminbi-denominated repurchase transactions to make treasury bonds issued in Hong Kong more popular collateral in the offshore market; and continuing research and optimization of “Cross-border Financial Connect”.

35. We are also working to increase offshore RMB liquidity and make good use of currency swap agreements between the Special Administrative Region and the country so that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) can better support Hong Kong's economic and trade development; enhance the nighttime cross-border service capabilities of the Hong Kong RMB instant payment clearing system to facilitate global settlement in the offshore RMB market; and explore the provision of more diversified offshore RMB financing channels.

36. More investment products denominated in RMB will be offered:

(i) Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEx) will encourage more listed companies to increase their RMB stock trading counters and expand the scope of RMB shares;

(ii) Expanding the issuance of RMB bonds to support the issuance of more green and sustainable offshore RMB bonds in Hong Kong;

(iii) Seek the Ministry of Finance to increase the scale and frequency of issuing treasury bonds in Hong Kong and launch offshore treasury bond futures in Hong Kong as soon as possible; and

(iv) Actively discuss with the Mainland the moderate expansion of the “Bond Connect” (Southbound Connect), including expanding the scope of eligible domestic investors, such as including non-bank financial institutions such as securities and insurance; enriching liquidity management related facilities for offshore investors to invest in onshore bonds; and actively studying and introducing various products and arrangements for onshore RMB bonds as collateral in due course.

Further strengthen its position as an international risk management center

37. Hong Kong has the highest concentration of insurance companies and the highest insurance density in Asia. In order to further strengthen Hong Kong's position as an international risk management center, the Insurance Authority will conduct a review next year, including a study on how to enrich the asset allocation of insurance companies through capital requirements for infrastructure investment to help spread risk and drive infrastructure investment in Beidu and other places. We will also continue to seek domestic and foreign companies, such as large mainland state-owned enterprises, to set up exclusive self-insurance companies in Hong Kong.

Further strengthen its position as an international asset and wealth management center

38. Hong Kong has 2,700 single-family offices, and the industry expects Hong Kong to become the world's largest cross-border wealth management center by 2028. We will make every effort to promote more global capital management in Hong Kong, including promoting private equity funds to develop new sales channels through the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and:

(i) “Belt and Road” sovereign fund cooperation - Seek cooperation with large sovereign funds in the Middle East and other regions to jointly fund the establishment of funds to invest in assets in mainland China and other regions;

(ii) Optimizing the “New Capital Investor Entry Program” - From now on, investment in residential properties is permitted. The transaction price of the property must be 50 million yuan or more, and the total investment limit for investing in real estate is 10 million yuan. Also, starting from March 1 next year, investments made through an eligible private company wholly owned by the applicant can be included in the eligible investment amount; and

(iii) Expanding the scope of application of tax relief — the Government will consult the industry to increase the types of transactions eligible for tax relief for funds and single family offices.

Actively expand the market and deepen overseas networks

39. We will continue to actively expand and deepen our overseas network, including financial cooperation with the Middle East and ASEAN regions, host more international financial events, and seek further cooperation with the Islamic market in the financial field.

Further optimize the securities market

40. Measures include:

(i) Develop new overseas capital — implement the listing of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that track Hong Kong stock indices in the Middle East and absorb local funds to allocate Hong Kong stocks;

(ii) Seek corporate listing — make good use of the advantages of “connectivity” with the mainland market to attract international companies to go public in Hong Kong, and promote the listing of large mainland enterprises in Hong Kong to achieve more iconic public offerings (IPOs) in the short term;

(iii) Optimizing listing approval — The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange will announce specific measures to further optimize the listing approval process to make the listing application approval time more certain; and

(iv) Improving market efficiency - The Securities Regulatory Commission and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange will improve market efficiency and reduce transaction costs, including reviewing deposit arrangements and optimizing margin and collateral requirements.

Facilitate cross-border financial arrangements for citizens

41. One part of developing inclusive finance is to facilitate citizens to conduct cross-border transactions and payments. The HKMA and the People's Bank of China are promoting the interconnection of the two countries' fast payment systems (i.e. Hong Kong's Fast Transfer Service (FPS) and the Mainland's Online Payment Interbank Clearing System (IBPS)) to facilitate real-time small-value cross-border payments; they will also implement the issuance of bank cards by mainland branches of Hong Kong registered banks in the Mainland.

Establishing an international gold trading market

42. Hong Kong's gold imports and exports rank among the highest in the world. Geopolitics are becoming increasingly complex, highlighting Hong Kong's security and stable environmental advantages, attracting international gold to be stored in Hong Kong, promoting gold trading, clearing and delivery, and developing Hong Kong as a gold trading center, driving the development of related industrial chains such as investment transactions, derivatives, insurance, warehousing, trade and logistics services.

43. The Government will promote the construction of world-class gold storage facilities, expand the storage and delivery of real funds by users and investors in Hong Kong, drive derivative financial services such as collateral and borrowing, and create new growth points for the financial industry.

44. The Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau (Treasury Bureau) will set up a team to carry out the work of establishing an international gold trading center, including strengthening trading mechanisms and regulatory frameworks, promoting cutting-edge fintech applications, and discussing the inclusion of gold products in “connectivity” with the Mainland.

Enhancing the green finance ecosystem

45. Hong Kong is Asia's leading sustainable finance center. The Hong Kong Stock Exchange's International Carbon Market (Core Climate) is currently the only international voluntary carbon credit product trading market settled in Hong Kong dollars and RMB.

46. The HKMA will launch the “Sustainable Finance Action Plan”, and the Treasury Department will also launch a road map for the full adoption of the International Financial Reporting Sustainable Disclosure Standards (ISSB Standards) within this year. The goal is to make Hong Kong one of the first jurisdictions to link local standards to ISSB standards.

(2) International Shipping Center

47. Hong Kong is one of the busiest and most efficient ports in the world, ranking fourth in the world in the International Shipping Center Development Index. The average time a container ship stays at Hong Kong port is 0.95 days, which is about half of the average value of the top 20 container ports in the world (1.85 days). It enjoys the reputation of a “spare time port”, which can make up for ships' delays at other ports.

48. The shipping business can be divided into port and shipping services. Shipping services (including professional services such as ship brokerage, financial leasing, maritime insurance, maritime law and arbitration) are a high value-added part of the shipping business. The economic contribution has increased by nearly 40% in the past three years (2019 to 2022), which is a source of growth. We will vigorously develop our shipping business while taking a multi-pronged approach to consolidate and enhance our position as an international shipping center.

Establishment of the “Hong Kong Maritime Ports Development Council”

49. The Government will reform the current “Hong Kong Maritime and Port Authority” and become the “Hong Kong Maritime Port Development Council” as a high-level advisory body to assist the Government in formulating policies and long-term development strategies. We will appoint an unofficial person as chairman. The members are mainly from the shipping industry, and have a stable dedicated research and promotion team to allocate additional resources, enhance research capabilities, strengthen promotion at home and abroad and strengthen manpower training, and more effectively support the government in implementing policies and promoting the sustainable development of Hong Kong's shipping industry.

Promoting the development of high-value-added shipping services

50. We will vigorously develop high-value-added shipping and professional businesses. The government has been promoting more shipping industry business leaders and shipping service companies to settle in Hong Kong, including providing tax exemptions for ship leasing and half-tax concessions for marine insurance, ship management, agency and brokerage services. We will continue to enhance Hong Kong's shipping advantages, including:

(i) Optimizing and promoting tax incentives — increasing promotion of existing tax relief measures for shipping services, optimizing tax preferential systems (including introducing new tax deduction arrangements for ship charterers in line with international tax rules), and expanding the local shipping ecosystem;

(ii) Soliciting marine service companies to settle in — promoting potential or representative marine insurance businesses to settle in Hong Kong and expand marine insurance products; and

(iii) Increase the cultivation of maritime talents — strengthen collaboration with international marine insurance agencies, promote marine insurance personnel training, expand the “Maritime and Air Transport Personnel Training Fund”, and include more green energy courses and marine insurance examinations.

Accelerate the construction of green shipping centers

51. We will make Hong Kong a green shipping center, including:

(i) Promoting the greening of registered ships - the Marine Department has provided cash incentives to ships that meet international carbon reduction standards since this year, and will step up promotion in the future;

(ii) Establishing a green marine fuel refueling center - announce the “Green Marine Fuel Refueling Action Plan” before the end of the year to promote infrastructure development such as green ship fuel storage depots, encourage port emissions reduction, provide incentives to encourage the use of green marine fuels, cooperate with Greater Bay Area ports, and build green shipping corridors with major trading partners; and

(iii) Providing green fuel refueling support - providing intelligent navigation safety information for green ships and improving vessel navigation monitoring service systems to help ensure safety during refueling.

Establishing a commodity trading ecosystem

52. Commodities such as metals and minerals account for more than half of global shipping transactions. Shipowners and commodity traders are the main users of shipping and shipping services. Attracting them to gather Hong Kong's operations to drive shipping services and promote financial and professional services such as futures hedging, which is beneficial to consolidating and enhancing Hong Kong's position as an international financial, shipping and trade center. We will study tax incentives and packages to attract relevant domestic and foreign companies to settle in Hong Kong and build a commodity trading ecosystem.

53. An international commodity exchange said it plans to set up an authorized warehouse in Hong Kong to store and deliver commodities, including non-ferrous metal products, in Hong Kong. We will seize the opportunity to promote the establishment of facilities and facilities to attract mainland enterprises to trade commodities in Hong Kong, particularly non-ferrous metals, and further promote Hong Kong's shipping and trade services.

Develop smart ports and organize international promotion

54. Next year, the government will complete the construction of an intelligent port system with functions such as cargo tracking, real-time transportation information, electronic information and document access, and port data analysis to promote the interconnection of information among stakeholders in the shipping, port and logistics industries.

55. The Government will also host more large-scale events with international shipping organizations and companies to promote Hong Kong's maritime strength to the world.

Expanding high-value-added logistics services

56. We are promoting the implementation of the “Modern Logistics Development Action Plan” and launching four high-quality logistics sites for the industry to develop multi-level modern high-end logistics facilities. Next year, we will announce the planning research results for the construction of a modern logistics circle in the Hung Shui Qiao/Xiacun New Development Zone.

57. The Government will continue to strengthen logistics cooperation with western Guangdong and neighboring regions, make good use of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, expand supplies, and facilitate the transit of goods through Hong Kong.

(3) International Trade Center

58. The global trade landscape is constantly changing. Some supply chains are migrating to the “Global South” and “Belt and Road” countries, and mainland enterprises are also actively going global.

59. According to the 2024 World Competitiveness Annual Report, Hong Kong ranks first in the world in “international trade” and “commercial regulations”. It is a preferred choice for domestic and foreign companies to establish international headquarters to manage offshore trade and supply chains.

Build a high value-added supply chain service center

60. Hong Kong has rich talents and networks for offshore trade and supply chain management, including professional services such as production chain management, export credit risk management, trade finance, marketing, testing and certification, and accounting. We will enhance high value-added supply chain services:

(i) Establishing a high-value-added supply chain service mechanism — the Investment Promotion Department and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (TDC) will establish a mechanism to strengthen ties to attract mainland enterprises to establish international or regional headquarters in Hong Kong, and provide one-stop multi-professional consulting services to help them “go global”;

(ii) Increased protection for corporate exports — The Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Council (HKCEC) will increase the statutory maximum coverage rate from 90% to 95%, and will provide more free buyer credit check services covering a wider range of regions. The Credit Insurance Bureau will also expand financing support for e-commerce;

(iii) Improve export credit services — promote the development of China Credit Insurance's settlement in Hong Kong, provide export credit insurance services for overseas investment and long investment periods, and provide better export credit services for mainland Hong Kong enterprises “going overseas” and when foreign investors enter the mainland;

(iv) Promoting electronic trade finance — The HKMA is testing the tokenization of electronic bills of lading through the “Ensemble” project sandbox, making good use of technology to reduce the risk of fraud and assist financial institutions to approve trade-related financing. The HKMA and other regions will develop mechanisms for transmitting relevant trade data in an experimental format to promote cross-border data flow and the digitalization of international trade; they will also allow potential issuers to test different blockchain application scenarios, including cross-border payment solutions, through the “Stablecoin Issuer Sandbox”; and

(v) Using data to enhance financial services — The HKMA's “Business Data Connect” is expected to be connected to the Land Registry system next year to help banks make good use of data optimization services.

Expanding global economic and trade networks

61. In addition to expanding the European and American markets, we will continue to expand our economic and trade networks, especially the “Belt and Road” countries, including:

(i) Expanding the development of trade in services in the Mainland — In the newly signed CEPA revised agreement on trade in services (i.e. agreement 2 on amending the “Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement”), the Mainland has further opened up various service sectors, including construction engineering, inspection, certification, finance, film, television, etc., and has abolished the three-year operating rule and preferential treatment in Hong Kong in most fields, while attracting more start-ups, overseas enterprises and talents to settle in Hong Kong to enter the Mainland. We will implement the agreement and enhance promotion and assistance;

(ii) Strengthen trade mechanism integration — continue to seek early accession to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP). We are currently negotiating investment agreements with Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia, and plan to do so with Egypt and Peru, respectively. We have completed negotiations on a free trade agreement with Peru and expect it to be formally signed within this year. We will also expand our global network of trade offices to focus on economic and trade links in emerging markets; and

(iii) Increase the expansion of key markets - We will continue to actively visit key markets such as the “Belt and Road”, lead the business community and the professional services sector to explore the “Belt and Road” market, and organize a “Belt and Road Interprofessional Forum” to promote professional services in Hong Kong.

Promote the economic development of the headquarters

62. The government will step up efforts to attract key domestic and foreign enterprises to set up headquarters or branch operations in Hong Kong. The Treasury Bureau will submit a bill within this year to formulate and introduce a company relocation mechanism, so that companies interested in entering Hong Kong do not need to first liquidate their original place of registration overseas and establish a new company in Hong Kong, but can maintain the company's corporate status, so that the company's business can continue to operate, simplify processes, and save costs.

63. We will make it easier for foreigners (including non-permanent residents) registered in Hong Kong to increase the validity period of “one visa, multiple travel” visas to the Mainland for up to five years, and to expedite processing.

64. In order to further attract mainland enterprises to use Hong Kong to “go overseas”, we will provide more financial services, promote the internationalization of mainland financial enterprises, and manage overseas business in an integrated manner in Hong Kong. The HKMA is studying ways to help mainland enterprises “going overseas” to enjoy the convenience of cross-border RMB settlement and financing in order to enhance offshore RMB liquidity, technology applications, and international cooperation.

Promoting the spirits trade

65. Currently, Hong Kong levies 100% of the import price on spirits (alcoholic beverages with an alcohol content greater than 30%). In order to promote the development of high-value-added industries such as alcohol trade, animal distribution and storage, tourism, and high-end food and beverage consumption, the government referred to the successful experience of abolishing the red wine tax. From now on, the tax rate for spirits with an import price of 200 yuan or more will be reduced from 100% to 10%, while for spirits with an import price of 200 yuan or less, and spirits with an import price of 200 yuan or less, the tax rate will remain unchanged.

(4) International aviation hubs

66. Hong Kong is an international aviation hub, connecting nearly 200 destinations around the world, and has the highest air cargo volume in the world for over a decade.

67. The Hong Kong Airport Authority (AA) will complete the construction of a three-runway system within this year, and the handling capacity of Hong Kong International Airport will increase by 50% from 2035.

Enhancing aviation development strategies

68. The Government will vigorously expand its aviation network to support Hong Kong International Airport in developing new destinations and flights, especially civil aviation cooperation with the “Belt and Road” countries, and at the same time combine the advantages of Zhuhai Airport to strengthen “fly through Pearl Harbor” direct passenger transport services, jointly develop international cargo services, and expand synergy effects.

Developing the world's leading airport city

69. The Government will work with the Airport Authority to plan the bay between Airport Island, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Port Artificial Island, and Tung Chung Tung New Town to more than double the size of the “Airport City” and create a new world-leading landmark. New projects include building an art industry ecosystem, building the second phase of the Asia Expo, setting up a yacht harbor and supporting facilities, opening a fresh air transport market, and increasing space for public events to drive high-end commercial, tourism and leisure activities.

Expanding air cargo advantages through the expansion of the Greater Bay Area

70. The Airport Authority and Dongguan are making every effort to promote the innovative development of “sea and air cargo intermodal transport”. By the end of next year, the first phase of the construction of the “Hong Kong International Airport Dongguan Airport Center” permanent facility will be completed in Dongguan, gradually reaching 1 million metric tons of cargo per year. We will deploy ahead of schedule, carry out the second phase of planned development, and introduce more high-value-added logistics, cross-border e-commerce and express service facilities.

71. The Government will extend the air transhipment cargo exemption arrangement to other multimodal transport models to enhance competitiveness.

(5) Regional International Law and Dispute Resolution Service Center

Develop training for international legal personnel

72. The “Hong Kong International Legal Personnel Training Institute” was officially launched this year to train legal personnel familiar with international law, common law, civil law and national legal systems. The Department of Justice's dedicated office and expert committee are making every effort to advance the work.

Strengthening facilitation of mediation services

73. The headquarters of the International Mediation Institute will be located in Hong Kong after the relevant international conventions are passed and entered into force. The Government will improve the certification and discipline system for local mediation professionals and further strengthen international mediation centers. We will add mediation clauses to government contracts, encourage private institutions to use them for reference, and launch the “Community Mediation Pilot Program” to increase training and promote a culture of mediation.

Establishing a sports dispute resolution system

74. With the development of sports and industry, sports disputes are becoming more complicated. We will study the establishment of a sports dispute resolution system, promote sports arbitration, and give full play to the advantages of Hong Kong's dispute resolution system.

4. Develop new quality productivity according to local conditions

75. The core of new quality productivity is empowered by technology to achieve high-quality economic development. Hong Kong is developing into an international innovation and technology center, promoting the upgrading and transformation of traditional industries and actively nurturing emerging industries. We will adapt to local conditions and vigorously develop new quality productivity.

(1) International Innovation and Technology Center

Improve new industrial development strategies and institution-building

76. We will formulate medium- to long-term development plans for Hong Kong's new industries, and promote the establishment of the “Hong Kong New Industrial Development Alliance” to promote close collaboration between “government, industry, academia, research and investment” and establish a platform for new industrial cooperation in Hong Kong, including providing financing opportunities and promoting innovation and technology cooperation between newly arrived listed companies and local universities.

Promoting the third “InnoHK Innovation Hong Kong R&D Platform”

77. InnoHK now brings together around 2,500 local and global researchers. The government has begun preparations to build the third InnoHK R&D platform, focusing on advanced manufacturing, materials, energy and sustainable development, attracting world-class research teams to cooperate with local universities to promote scientific research and gather talents.

Expanding research funding

78. The Government will launch a new round of the 1.5 billion yuan “Research Matching Grant Program” to encourage more institutions to fund research in institutions.

Increase investment in the innovation and technology industry

79. We will increase investment and lead market capital to innovate the way the government invests in the innovation and technology industry, including:

(i) Set up a $10 billion “Innovation and Technology Industry Guidance Fund” — establish a parent fund to strengthen and guide market capital to invest in designated strategic emerging and future industries, including life and health technology, artificial intelligence and robotics, semiconductors and smart devices, advanced materials and new energy, etc., to systematically build an innovation and technology industry ecosystem;

(ii) Optimizing the “Innovation and Technology Venture Capital Fund” — allocating 1.5 billion yuan in partnership with the industry to establish a joint fund to invest in startups in strategic industries and further enhance the construction of Hong Kong's startup ecosystem; and

(iii) Leveraging the power of Hong Kong Investment Corporation's “patient capital” - Hong Kong Investment Corporation will continue to guide and leverage market capital to work together to attract innovation and technology companies to settle in and take root in Hong Kong.

Attracting international startup accelerators to settle in Hong Kong

80. The Government will launch the “Innovation and Technology Accelerator Pilot Program” and allocate 180 million yuan with a matching ratio of 1 (government) :2 (institution), with a funding limit of 30 million yuan to attract professional startup service organizations with rich experience at home and abroad to establish accelerator bases in Hong Kong and promote the growth of startups.

Developing a low-altitude economy

81. Low-altitude economy refers to low-altitude economic activities generally carried out in the airspace below 1,000 meters. It can be used in the fields of rescue, surveying, delivery and carrying passengers. The construction of a low-altitude economic management system will also drive the development of communication technology, artificial intelligence, and digital industries to activate low-altitude airspace as a factor of production in the new economy.

82. The Government will establish a “Low Altitude Economy Development Working Group”, headed by the Deputy Secretary for Finance, to formulate development strategies and cross-departmental action plans, start with application projects, set specific application sites to promote projects, and formulate regulations and construction systems to study and deploy infrastructure equipment and networks, including:

(i) Develop low-altitude flight application scenarios - fully implement pilot projects and set up sites to explore drone applications, including drone delivery, surveying, building maintenance, aerial photography, demonstrations, and search and rescue;

(ii) Revise relevant regulations — including easing “over-the-line flight” and drone weight and cargo restrictions, driving the market to increase investment in R&D, promoting technology testing, and developing aerial tours;

(iii) Connecting with the Mainland — discussing joint construction of low-altitude cross-border routes, immigration and customs clearance arrangements and infrastructure support with the Mainland; and

(iv) Research and deployment of low-altitude infrastructure - The long-term development of low-altitude activities must rely on efficient, intelligent and digital low-altitude infrastructure systems to manage low-altitude activity networks in real time and deal with complex management and security issues. The working group will conduct technical research and planning on the construction of supporting facilities for low-altitude activities (such as landing sites and charging stations), communication networks, route networks, and management to lay the foundation for development.

Promoting the development of communication technology

83. The cost of low-orbit satellites is lower than traditional satellites, and the government will study simplifying the approval process for applying for a license to operate a low-orbit satellite. Furthermore, the government will provide more suitable radio spectrum to the market in due course.

Promote aerospace science and technology research and development

84. The Hong Kong research team has been actively involved in space science and technology research and development. This year, Hong Kong residents were also selected as reserve astronauts. We are very grateful to the country for supporting Hong Kong's development of space-related technology. The government will set up a research center under the InnoHK R&D platform to participate in the Chang'e-8 mission and contribute to the country's space development.

Promoting the development of new energy

85. The Government will set aside about 750 million yuan in the New Energy Transportation Fund to fund the taxi industry and franchised bus companies to purchase electric vehicles, and launch a hydrogen fuel cell heavy vehicle subsidy test scheme.

86. We will further promote the development of new energy sources, including:

(i) Set sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) usage targets — accelerate aviation carbon reduction and meet the growing demand for SAF from international airlines;

(ii) Develop a sustainable aviation and green marine fuel supply chain — long-term industrial development plans will be made on supply and demand, storage, refueling, etc.; and

(iii) Promoting green hydrogen and low hydrogen carbon energy — Actively assist the industry to build solar hydrogen generation devices as an industrial model, and submit draft regulations next year to ensure the safe use of hydrogen fuel. The Government will also prepare a certification model for hydrogen energy standards in Hong Kong.

(ii) Regional Intellectual Property Trade Center

87. Hong Kong's IP-intensive industries each account for about 30% of the gross domestic product and the total number of employed people in Hong Kong. We will expand the intellectual property trading ecosystem for science, innovation, cultural and creative industries, and strengthen our position as a regional intellectual property trade center.

Improving the Intellectual Property Legal Framework

88. The government will strengthen the protection of R&D, innovation and creative achievements, including putting forward proposals next year to strengthen the Copyright Regulations to protect the development of artificial intelligence technology; currently reviewing the current system for registered designs and commencing consultations next year; and submitting legislative proposals to optimize intellectual property litigation procedures so that the High Court can more effectively manage and adjudicate related lawsuits.

89. Next year, the Trademark Registry under the Intellectual Property Department will launch a new artificial intelligence-assisted image search service to facilitate the public's search of trademark databases.

90. With the support of the central government, Hong Kong plans to participate in the World Intellectual Property Organization's Legal Judgment Database next year to share important intellectual property cases from Hong Kong courts and highlight the level of intellectual property administration in Hong Kong.

Strengthen the training of intellectual property personnel

91. The Government will continue to discuss with the patent agency industry and stakeholders to plan regulatory arrangements for the establishment of local patent agency services, covering qualifications, registration, etc., to promote professional talent development and quality improvement.

92. The Intellectual Property Department will cooperate with the Qualifications Framework Secretariat to develop practical textbooks for use by training institutions, which will benefit practitioners in 23 different industries.

(3) International medical innovation hub

93. In order to speed up patients' access to advanced diagnosis and treatment and promote new productivity in biomedical technology, the Government will use institutional innovation to complement scientific and technological innovation to develop Hong Kong as an international medical innovation hub.

Reform the pharmaceutical approval system

94. The Government will speed up the reform of the pharmaceutical approval system, including:

(i) Extend the “1+” approval mechanism to all new drugs, including vaccines and advanced therapeutic products, and improve the review system to speed up registration to reflect “good medicine for use in Hong Kong”;

(ii) Implement the schedule for the establishment of the “Hong Kong Pharmaceutical Regulatory Centre” and the road map towards “first-tier approval”, and formulate strategies and measures to support drug development; and

(iii) Advancing legislative preparations to regulate medical devices.

Strengthen the transformation of biomedical technology research and development

95. The Government will enhance Hong Kong's clinical trial capabilities and promote the transformation of innovative biomedical achievements in all aspects, including:

(i) Hong Kong and Shenzhen will jointly build the “Greater Bay Area Clinical Trial Collaboration Platform” to expand the R&D network to speed up clinical trials;

(ii) Establishing a “Real World Research and Application Center” to promote cooperation between Hong Kong and Shenzhen and combine “Hong Kong and Macau Pharmacopoeia” data to speed up the approval and marketing of new drugs in Hong Kong, the Mainland and abroad; and

(iii) Support research and development, clinical trials and applications of advanced biomedical technology in Hong Kong, and attract the world's top innovative enterprises and R&D institutions to settle in Hong Kong.

(4) Promoting the integrated development of the digital economy and the real economy

96. Improving systems to promote the integration of the real economy and the digital economy is one of the key points of a new quality of productivity. The government will accelerate the development of the digital economy, including speeding up the digital transformation of industries, strengthening digital infrastructure, studying and promoting the data transaction ecosystem, and using the Greater Bay Area as a pilot to explore arrangements to facilitate the flow of data across borders.

Accelerate the development of digital trade

97. The government will actively promote the digital reform of enterprise trade, including seeking participation in international discussions on the development of the digital economy, and studying the inclusion of relevant sections in bilateral trade agreements to promote the development of digital trade and cross-border e-commerce.

98. The Commerce and Economic Development Bureau is making every effort to develop a single trade window to provide a one-stop electronic platform to facilitate the industry to submit import and export trade documents for customs declaration and customs clearance. The HKMA has set up a working group to conduct an in-depth study and make recommendations on future changes in supply chain trends. The scope of the research includes how to promote electronic trade in terms of talent, financial infrastructure, technology, legislation, etc., to reduce trade costs and enhance the trade ecosystem.

Building a Fintech Innovation Ecosystem

99. The government will continue to promote innovative financial services such as central bank digital currency, mobile payments, virtual banking, virtual insurance, and virtual asset transactions. The Treasury Bureau will issue a policy declaration explaining the policy position and policy on the application of artificial intelligence in financial markets. Other measures include:

(i) Promoting cross-border payment applications with central bank digital currency (CBDC) — The HKMA is actively testing and exploring more technical solutions and scenarios related to cross-border trade settlement on the “Multiple Central Bank Digital Currency Cross-border Network” (mBridge), and expanding the participation of public and private institutions;

(ii) Improve the regulation of virtual asset transactions - the Treasury Bureau will complete the second round of consultation on the regulation of virtual asset OTC transactions and submit a proposed licensing system to regulate virtual asset custodian service providers;

(iii) Promoting real-world asset tokenization and digital currency ecosystems — The HKMA is promoting the “Ensemble” financial market infrastructure project, exploring the application of real-world asset tokenization, and using digital currencies for interbank settlement to promote the development of related asset transactions. In addition, the HKMA also allows potential issuers to test business plans and application scenarios through the “Stablecoin Issuer Sandbox”, and to submit draft regulations to regulate fiat stablecoin issuers within this year; and

(iv) Promoting the development of the digital securities market - The HKMA will soon launch the “Digital Bond Funding Scheme” to encourage more financial institutions and issuers to adopt tokenization technology in capital market transactions.

Facilitate cross-border e-commerce logistics services

100. In order to make Hong Kong a cross-border e-commerce logistics distribution center, the Government will review current processes to improve the efficiency of cross-border goods delivery and enhance Hong Kong's competitiveness.

Promoting the digitalization of public housing construction and management

101. The Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA) has selected ten housing estates as pilot smart housing estate management projects. Starting next year, it will establish a central property management platform to introduce digital technology into daily management to improve management efficiency and service quality. Starting next year, the Housing Authority will gradually apply project information management and analysis platforms to new public housing projects, implement digital project management, and make good use of 3D digital maps, virtual digital models, etc. to improve project efficiency.

Promoting legal technology

102. The Department of Justice will set up an “Advisory Group for Promoting the Development of Legal Technology” to formulate policies and measures and promote the application of legal technology in the industry.

5. Build a highland for international high-end talents

(1) Promoting the integrated development of education, science and technology, and talents in an integrated manner

103. Education nurtures the future, technology shows strength, and talent leads development. The Government will establish the “Education, Technology and Talent Committee”, chaired by the Chief Secretary for Administration, to promote the integrated development of education, technology and talents in an integrated manner, expand connectivity and coherence, formulate policies to promote the collaborative development of talent nurturing, talent acquisition, and technology, and promote the gathering of high-end international talents in Hong Kong.

(2) Gathering talents

104. With five of the world's top 100 universities, Hong Kong is a gathering place for international high-end talent exchange and cooperation.

Seize talent

105. The government introduced a new talent import mechanism at the end of 2022. So far, more than 380,000 applications have been received, and about 160,000 talents have arrived in Hong Kong with their families.

106. In the next five years, it is estimated that there will be a shortage of about 180,000 people in various industries. In order to establish a high-quality talent pool and cooperate with development, we will innovate various mechanisms for importing talents, including:

(i) Update the “Talent List” and add the talents needed to promote the “Eight Major Centers”;

(ii) Expand the list of universities under the “High-end Talent Pass Program”, add 13 top universities at home and abroad to 198, and extend the initial visa period for high-income talents under the program from 2 to 3 years;

(iii) Optimizing the “General Employment Policy” and the “Mainland Talent Import Scheme” to add new channels to attract young and experienced professionals in designated skilled trades with extremely scarce manpower to come to Hong Kong. The new arrangement will establish quotas;

(iv) Establishing additional mechanisms under the “Outstanding Talent Entry Scheme” to actively invite top talents to develop in Hong Kong and promote the gathering of international high-end talents in Hong Kong; and

(v) Extend the trial arrangement for Hong Kong university graduates from the Greater Bay Area campus to be included in the “Stay/Return to Hong Kong Employment Arrangement” for a period of two years.

Helping talents stay and develop in Hong Kong

107. In addition to providing assistance in response to the individual needs of talents, the “Talent Service Office” (Talent Service Office) will strengthen the promotion of online platforms, provide comprehensive information on remuneration, taxation, education and visas, expand the partner network, and jointly host online and offline job fairs with the industry and employer groups to enable direct career matching between employers and talents. The Talent Office will then hold an international talent forum and promote it overseas.

Promoting the construction of international post-secondary education hubs

Nurture future talents to build the “Study in Hong Kong” brand

108. The Government is making every effort to promote Hong Kong as an international post-secondary education hub, including:

(i) Encourage more local students to further their studies - establish the “Hong Kong Future Talent Further Education Scholarship Scheme” to provide scholarships to up to 1,200 local students taking courses at designated research institutes every year starting from the 2025/26 school year;

(ii) Building the “Study in Hong Kong” brand — seeking to host international education conferences and exhibitions, promote cooperation and exchange with local institutions, promote the “Study in Hong Kong” brand globally, and attract more students from overseas, especially ASEAN and other “Belt and Road” countries, to study in Hong Kong through scholarships, etc.; and

(iii) Improving dormitory facilities — We will launch a pilot program to dismantle and untie the planning, land administration, and construction plan approval, and encourage the market to modify hotels and other commercial buildings at its own expense and private means to increase the supply of student dormitories. The government will also provide suitable plots for the market to build new dormitories in response to market demand. The Project Promotion Office under the Development Bureau will provide one-stop consultation and facilitation services for these projects.

Promoting the high-quality development of self-funded institutions

109. Next year, a draft revision of the “Regulations on Tertiary Colleges” will be submitted to improve the supervision and quality assurance mechanisms of self-financing tertiary institutions.

Construction of Hokuto University Education City

110. The government has reserved at least 80 hectares of land in Beidu to develop the “Beidu University Education City”, encouraging local tertiary institutions and well-known Chinese and foreign institutions to develop more branded courses, research cooperation and exchange programs using flexible and innovative models. Flexibility will also be reserved during planning to facilitate the development of student dormitories. We plan to announce the “Beidu University Education City Concept Development Outline” in the first half of 2026.

(3) Cultivating talents

Promoting Multiple Approaches

Promoting the development of universities of applied sciences

111. The Hong Kong Metropolitan University has been accepted as the first university of applied science. The University of Applied Sciences Alliance will be established within this year to carry out joint promotion, strengthen exchanges and cooperation with local applied science colleges, etc. The government has allocated 100 million yuan as the starting capital for the alliance.

Expanding the professional talent pool

112. The Government will build a school building and develop a lift and escalator technology centre for the newly established Hong Kong Institute of Information Technology by the Vocational Training Council.

Promoting STEAM education in primary and secondary schools

113. The Education Bureau will establish a “Digital Education Strategy Development Steering Committee” to promote digital education, update junior high school science courses, and support teachers in teaching using artificial intelligence.

Strengthen support for schools, teachers and students

114. The Government will allocate $2 billion to set up the Teacher Professional Development Fund to support the long-term development of teachers' professions and continuously optimize teacher training and exchange programs; it will also allocate about $470 million to strengthen the learning and teaching of English, Mandarin and other languages, as well as to enhance the care of students with special learning needs, and continue to provide financial support such as book allowances for students with financial needs.

Accelerate youth dormitory projects

115. In response to young people's expectations for self-living space, the Government launched a youth dormitory scheme and expanded the scheme two years ago to fund NGOs to rent suitable hotels and hostels and convert them into youth dormitories. We have also set up a task force to provide targeted support and technical advice, including assisting them in discussions with hotel owners to reach an agreement as soon as possible. The number of places has now increased to about 3,000.

Support youth to buy and fund the sale of units

116. Starting with the next phase, the Housing Authority will allocate an additional lottery number to young whitelisted families and single applicants under the White Bill Home Ownership Program (Home); and with the next phase of the White Bill Home Second Market Plan, 1,500 quotas will be increased, all of which will be allocated to young families under 40 and one applicant.

Strengthening support for youth development

117. We will set up a “Youth Post” hostel and youth cultural and art exchange space at the Kai Tak Community Quarantine Facility, set up a “Lianqing People Network” physical interactive platform at the Nanchang Community Center, and strengthen communication with young people, including making good use of the new app “HKYouth+” and other online media.

118. To enhance the potential to support youth development, the Government will open up a new interactive space and set up a video studio in Youth Square; and launch a new round of the “Youth Career Planning Activity Funding Scheme” to fund NGOs to optimize their services and strengthen national elements. The Hong Kong Jockey Club will invest 300 million yuan to support it.

119. We will continue to promote exchange and internship programs in the Mainland and overseas, optimize the “Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Program”, relax eligibility to age 29 or below and hold a sub-degree or above, raise the upper limit of employment allowances to enterprises to $12,000 per month, and explore two-way arrangements.

120. Optimize the “Spread Your Wings and Vision Program”, rename it the “Spread Your Wings Youth Employment Program”, relax the upper age limit to 29, and add internship opportunities for work in the Greater Bay Area.

6. Promote the integrated development of culture, sports and tourism and promote a diversified economy

(1) Chinese-foreign cultural and artistic exchange centers integrate cultural, sports and tourism development

121. The current government established the Culture, Sports and Tourism Administration (CETA) to coordinate the integrated development of culture, creative industries, sports and tourism. In order to enhance Hong Kong as a center for cultural and artistic exchange between China and foreign countries, the Government is determined to deepen the reform of the cultural system, improve cultural and economic policies, and further enhance cultural self-confidence.

Enhance cultural soft power and promote the development of cultural and creative industries

122. Last year, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Administration sought opinions from the arts and culture community on formulating the “Blueprint for the Development of the Literary, Artistic and Creative Industries”, which covers four development directions: promoting diverse and international cultural and artistic development, promoting Chinese culture and art exchanges, and promoting industrialization. The Culture, Sports and Tourism Administration will consult the Cultural Council later and make an announcement within this year.

123. The “Cultural and Creative Industries Development Office” was established in June this year to promote industry development through industry orientation, including:

(i) The “Creative Intelligence Program” will cultivate more cultural and creative projects with potential for industrialization, strengthen cross-sector cooperation, introduce market resources, and help the industry explore business opportunities;

(ii) Promote more cultural and creative products from Hong Kong and overseas to join the “Asian Intellectual Property Trading Platform”, promote cross-sector exchanges, cooperation and business matching, and promote cultural intellectual property transactions and transformation; and

(iii) Develop the new flagship “Hong Kong Fashion Design Week” into an annual event to make Hong Kong the center of fashion design in Asia.

Strengthening the long-term industrial development of the West Kowloon Cultural District

124. The West Kowloon Cultural District is one of the largest cultural and arts projects in the world. The West Kowloon Cultural District Authority will take the lead in building the Hong Kong literary and creative industry chain, promote cultural and creative tourism, and optimize financial sustainability through diversified and innovative industrialization, including:

(i) Further expand Hong Kong's art trading advantages — promote the establishment of a complete art trading ecosystem and establish high-end private art collection storage, restoration and exhibition facilities;

(ii) Promoting the Cultural District as a venue for international cultural, creative and commercial events — the West Kowloon Cultural District has more than 20 event venues that can host different types of events, increasing efforts to attract international cultural, creative and commercial events to be held in the cultural district, encouraging more visitors to visit Hong Kong and stimulate consumption;

(iii) Strengthening the output of cultural, artistic and creative projects — planning and curating performing arts and exhibition projects for long-term performances and exhibitions locally or at home and abroad using commercial principles, and expanding sales channels for cultural and creative products; and

(iv) Build a cultural district to become a must-see cultural and creative tourist landmark — launch more unique experiential activities, and work with the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) to strengthen global publicity to attract more visitors.

Promote sports development and build an international sports event capital

125. In recent years, Hong Kong athletes have performed well in international competitions. Hong Kong has rich resource facilities. Coupled with the new landmark of Kai Tak Sports Park, which is about to be completed, and the 15th National Games to be co-hosted by Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao at the end of next year, it has excellent conditions to become an international sports platform. The Government will continue to promote the popularization, elitization, specialization and industrialization of sports, including:

(i) Strengthening the development of elite athletes and coaches — The Government has invited the Hong Kong Sports Institute to review the direct funding mechanism for athletes (including athletes with disabilities), optimize the training system, and set up a committee to oversee the development of sports medicine and sports science. The Government will also strengthen coach training and explore the feasibility of establishing a unified coach certification system;

(ii) Promoting the popularization of sports activities — providing more sports and recreational facilities, including building a swimming pool that can host international competitions and a gymnasium equipped with fencing training and competition equipment, and regularizing pilot funding schemes for emerging sports activities;

(iii) Reforming the governance of the Sports Federation - The Hong Kong Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of China will complete the “Federation of Sports Federation Organizational Governance and Operation” review and make recommendations to ensure that the Federation can operate efficiently and enable athletes (including those with disabilities) to develop their potential in a fair and professional environment; and

(iv) Develop the sports industry's home economy — The Government will continue to support athletes to participate in various events and make full use of Kai Tak Sports Park and other existing venues to host many major international events, so that the Hong Kong team can compete at home, build an audience, and benefit the long-term development of the sports industry.

126. The Government will re-examine the Hong Kong Stadium renovation plan to ensure the synergy between Kai Tak Sports Park and the Hong Kong Stadium.

Making Kai Tak Sports Park a landmark for sports and events

127. Kai Tak Sports Park, which will open in the first quarter of next year, is the largest sports infrastructure in Hong Kong's history. It will help promote sports development and drive the development of leisure, entertainment, tourism and other industries and the event economy.

128. The “Kai Tak Sports Park Interdepartmental Working Group” led by the Chief Secretary for Administration will step up supervision of the successful completion and promotion of the sports park, promote the collaborative development of sporting events, innovative entertainment, catering, conferences, exhibitions and tourism, and make thorough plans and drills on safety deployment, crowd management, and emergency handling.

Enhancing cultural confidence and creating a new face for Hong Kong tourism

129. We will use innovative thinking to make Hong Kong the preferred tourist destination, making good use of Hong Kong's rich and unique resources, such as Victoria Harbour, islands, countryside, culture, cuisine, lifestyle and historical architecture, and combining the advantages of technology, animation, performing arts, film and television culture to achieve “Hong Kong Everywhere Travel”.

130. The Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau announced the “Hong Kong Tourism Industry Development Blueprint 2.0” (“Blueprint 2.0”) this year, which focuses on promoting culture, sports, ecology and events. The areas include:

(i) Develop ecotourism — we will explore more unique rural and coastal tourism routes and improve packages, such as island hopping in Yinzhou Tong; accelerate the construction of the “South Lantau Ecological Recreation Corridor”; develop the former Lamma Quarry site as a leisure vacation and outdoor recreation area; and develop Tsim Bei Tsui and Pak Nai as ecotourism nodes;

(ii) Develop a customer base from the Middle East and ASEAN — we will actively promote all sectors of the community to enhance relevant travel packages and create a friendly environment for travelers, including providing information in Arabic at the airport and encouraging taxi fleets to provide fleet service information in Arabic, integrating the list of restaurants that serve halal food, encouraging more commercial organizations to provide suitable facilities, such as providing worship facilities in hotels, and strengthening staff training to deepen their understanding of treating travelers with different cultural backgrounds;

(iii) Expand unique tourism products — promote yacht tourism at the Aberdeen Typhoon Shelter Expansion Section, the former Lamma Quarry and the Hung Hom Station Waterfront Land Project; actively promote panda tourism, horse racing tourism, etc. The Culture, Sports and Tourism Administration will promote Sha Tau Kok cultural ecotourism route products; the Security Bureau will also raise the daily travel quota for the Sha Tau Kok Open Plan to 3,000 people within this year, and use facial recognition technology to allow people living and working on Chung Ying Street to try “unobstructed” ways to enter and exit Chung Ying Street, and will also study and apply relevant technology to cooperate with the future development of open Zhongying Street;

(iv) Developing the event tourism economy - The “Event Coordination Group” led by the Deputy Secretary for Finance will continue to take the initiative to attract different events to be held in Hong Kong, boosting the retail and hospitality industry. We will promote the development of waterfront and pier sites above Wanchai North Convention and Exhibition Station and surrounding Hung Hom Station, provide event venues, and become new landmarks;

(v) Strengthening the appeal of traditional tourism - The Tourism and Development Board will draw up a food guide for the 18th district, host food events, and promote regional cuisine. The Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau will also announce a cruise tourism development action plan when announcing “Blueprint 2.0” to enhance the function of the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal as a home port and conference, exhibition and event venue; and

(vi) Promoting smart tourism and improving the service quality of the tourism industry — The HKTB will increase the number of local and overseas travelers, develop and promote more Hong Kong-specific tourism projects, and use artificial intelligence and other technology to provide one-stop support and attraction promotion. We will also launch a brand-new Outstanding Service Award Program to further implement “Hospitality”.

Develop special tourist hotspots

131. The Government will set up a “Tourism Hotspot Development Working Group”, headed by the Deputy Secretary for Administration, to strengthen cross-departmental coordination and combine social forces to discover and build popular and attractive tourism hotspots in the region.

Increase the number of inbound travelers

132. The HKSAR Government has submitted a request to the central government to further optimize travel endorsements for mainland residents to Hong Kong, including reinstating Shenzhen's “one visa, multiple travel” individual travel endorsements and expanding the scope of pilot cities with the “one trip per week” individual travel endorsement policy. The relevant departments of the central government indicated that they will actively research and accelerate progress.

133. In order to promote exchanges with ASEAN, the government will now relax the application threshold for tourism and business in Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar and increase the validity period of “one-visa multi-travel” visas from two to three years. Vietnam, which was relaxed last year, will also benefit. We will set up an expedited approval channel so that group travelers from these ASEAN countries can get expedited processing of visa applications submitted through local travel agents. In addition, we will provide self-service customs clearance services for specially invited persons from the 10 ASEAN countries related to trade and development activities, and handle their self-service customs clearance and visa applications in one stop through the counter. Various policy bureaus will assist in drawing up the list. We will also completely abolish the requirement for travelers to submit a declaration of arrival or departure from Hong Kong from now on to make entry and exit more convenient.

(2) Promoting diversified economies to support SMEs

134. In response to the challenges that SMEs often face during the economic transition period, the Government will introduce the following support measures:

(i) Further “repayment of principal” — Borrowers under the “SME Finance Guarantee Program” (including loans already approved under 80%, 90%, and 100% special guarantee products, and new loans made under 80% and 90% credit guarantee products) are allowed to apply for “no repayment” for up to 12 months, and the maximum loan guarantee period for 80% and 90% credit guarantee products is extended to 10 and 8 years, respectively. At the same time, “partial principal repayment” options are provided for newly created loans under the two types of guarantee products. The HKMA is also actively considering flexibility in banks' capital requirements to facilitate banks to provide financing to SMEs;

(ii) Inject 1 billion yuan into the “BUD Special Fund” — to assist SMEs to upgrade, transform and expand new markets through the fund (the full name is the “Special Fund for Brand Development, Upgrading and Transformation and Domestic Sales Market Expansion”), including expanding the scope of “E-commerce Easy” regional funding to the 10 ASEAN countries, and more targeted funding for enterprises to implement green transformation projects;

(iii) Support the digital transformation of SMEs and seize e-commerce opportunities - expand the scope of the Cyberport “Digital Transformation Support Pilot Program” to extend the scope of the digital transformation of SMEs from the retail and catering industry to the travel and personal services sector, etc., to fund the digital transformation of SMEs on a one-on-one basis. The “Hong Kong Good Things Festival” will continue to be held in the next two years to help SMEs expand the mainland e-commerce sales market, and hold the “Hong Kong Good Things Festival” in the ASEAN market in due course;

(iv) Strengthening SME brand development - The TDC formulates plans to set up more Hong Kong pavilions at mainland and overseas exhibitions to enhance the promotion of Hong Kong brands. The Trade and Industry Department and the Trade Development Council will also step up support for SMEs to develop brands and expand e-commerce sales networks;

(v) Strengthening Hong Kong Design Centre services — restructuring the structure and functions of the Hong Kong Design Centre to assist SMEs in the design industry to enhance product and brand design services, and enhance cooperation and interface with start-ups and mainland enterprises in Hong Kong;

(vi) Strengthen regular exhibition incentives - allocate an additional 500 million yuan to launch the “Regular Exhibition Incentive Program 2.0”, which focuses on supporting new and large-scale international exhibitions and increasing the development of the event economy and exhibition industry;

(vii) Assist in participating in government procurement - the Housing Authority will optimize the application process to join the list of maintenance contractors to provide contractors with more bidding opportunities; and

(viii) Strengthening payment guarantees in the construction industry - the “Construction Industry Payment Guarantee Bill”, which has been submitted by the Government, prohibits the inclusion of unfair clauses such as “conditional payment” in contracts and introduces an adjudication mechanism to resolve payment disputes.

Develop the silver hair economy

135. The silver hair market is growing rapidly, and demand for elderly products and services continues to expand. Developing new products and services can meet the needs of the elderly, improve their quality of life, and bring business opportunities.

136. The Government will establish a “Working Group on Promoting the Banking Economy”, headed by the Deputy Secretary for Administration, to introduce measures in five areas:

(i) Promoting “silver consumption” — building age-friendly consumption with various sectors, encouraging the inclusion of financial elements of silver hair in the business, such as discounts for the elderly, and protecting the rights of older consumers;

(ii) Develop a “silver industry” — promote the marketization and industrialization of elderly products, integrate funding resources, promote the business community to provide products and expand the market;

(iii) Promoting “Silver Quality Assurance” - promoting the certification of elderly products, improving acceptance and attractiveness, connecting with domestic and international standards, and expanding the sales network;

(iv) Promoting “Silver Financial and Protection Arrangements” — assisting the elderly to make proper financial arrangements and enhance protection, including promoting retirement wealth management products under the Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation, education for elderly investors, etc.; and

(v) Release the “silver productive force” — help release the productivity of the elderly in the direction of retraining and re-employment.

Promoting the sustainable development of fishery and agriculture

137. The Government continues to promote the “Blueprint for Sustainable Fisheries and Agriculture”, which includes developing deep-sea aquaculture in the new fish farming area at Wong Chuk Kok Sea and Dapeng Bay, preparing the second phase of the agricultural park development work, implementing the “urban agriculture” strategy in the new development zone, promoting the livestock industry to build multi-level modern and environmentally friendly livestock farms, and promoting recreational fishing agriculture.

7. Promote the development engine of the northern metropolitan area and deepen cooperation in the Greater Bay Area

(1) Promoting the construction of the northern metropolitan area

138. The Northern Metropolitan Area (Beidu) is the new engine of Hong Kong's economic development. On the premise of maintaining sound public finances, we will accelerate the promotion of projects related to economic and housing development in Beitou.

139. The northern part of the country will gradually enter the harvest period. In the next five years, about 60,000 housing units will be completed, including about 10 new public housing estates; the first batch of land in Xintian Science and Technology City will be put on the market; and the new Huanggang Port building, which will carry out “two inspections in one place”, will also be completed. In the second five years, the number of newly completed housing units will increase by about 150,000; the total floor area of over 10 million square meters will be used for economic use; the first joint government office building in Gudong North will be completed and put into service; the North District Hospital will be expanded and put into service; in terms of transportation infrastructure, the main line of the North Ring Road will be completed in 2034, and the North Capital Highway (Xintian section) is expected to be opened in 2036. This will vigorously boost economic development, promote the development of the research and technology industry, and provide a better living environment to help absorb and retain talents to take root, improve the quality of life of citizens, benefit people's livelihood, and add happiness.

140. The government will seek funding for the first phase of the Xintian Science and Technology City infrastructure project. The project will begin this year, aiming to launch about 20 hectares of new innovation and technology land one after another from 2026-27, and hand it over to the Science Park Corporation for development and operation. Also, the second phase of the Yuen Long South New Development Area project will commence in the middle of next year. Preliminary development proposals for Ngau Tam Mei will be announced shortly. Land will be reserved to promote the development of the “Beidu University Education City”, the third medical school, and a comprehensive medical teaching and research hospital. The preliminary development proposals for Beixin Town and Macaolong in the New Territories will then be announced at the end of the year. Within this year, the transformation process of Shaling in the North District will be launched, and the I&T site used for data centers and related purposes will be expanded to 10 hectares.

141. We are exploring the selection of pilot industrial parks, such as some logistics land in the Hung Shui Kiu/Xiacun New Development Zone, to be granted to companies established and led by the government to be responsible for formulating park development and operation strategies (including considering receiving strategic investment), daily management, and investment promotion in accordance with the government's industrial policy. Details will be announced in the first quarter of next year. We will also consider allocating industrial land flexibly to meet the development needs of individual industries to promote industrial development.

142. The government will test the “area development” model to speed up the construction of Beidu, select plots with scale and commercial value and that will provide public facilities as areas. The project developers will comprehensively develop them, so that the area can be completed faster and the design more coordinated. We identified three areas each covering an area of 10 to 20 hectares as pilot projects.

(2) Promoting the development of the Hetao Port Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park

143. The Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone is located on both sides of the Shenzhen River, including the Shenzhen Park and the Hong Kong Park. The Government will combine the advantages of “one country, two systems” with the “one river, two systems” geographical advantage to develop the Hetao Hong Kong Park into a world-class industry-university-research platform, build an internationally competitive industrial pilot transformation base, create a gathering point for global innovation and technology resources, and open up a testing ground for system and policy innovation.

144. I have set up the “Hetao District Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park Steering Committee”, chaired by the Chief Executive, to lead the Government in formulating the overall strategy, plan and layout for the development of the Hong Kong Park. The “Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone Hong Kong Park Development Outline” was released within this year, proposing innovative policies to promote the circulation of personnel, materials, capital and data between the Hong Kong and Shenzhen parks, making the cooperative zone an important strategic source for the country to cultivate new quality productivity.

145. The Hong Kong Park is being developed in two phases from west to east. It is currently speeding up and increasing the volume to double the total floor area of the first phase to 1 million square meters. The first three buildings will be completed one after another starting at the end of the year. The first batch of tenants from the park's pillar industries, such as life and health technology, artificial intelligence, and data science, will start moving in next year, and the remaining five buildings will all be completed in the next five years.

146. We are also exploring innovative facilitation measures with relevant national ministries and departments, such as: convenient transit for specific personnel in the Hong Kong and Shenzhen parks; the use of unmanned low-altitude transportation to facilitate the cross-border flow of goods; and the facilitation of cross-border capital transfers for mainland enterprises settled in Hong Kong parks.

(3) Mutual expansion based on the advantages of the Greater Bay Area

147. The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is a strategic fulcrum of the country's new development pattern, a demonstration site for high-quality development, and a leader in Chinese modernization. Hong Kong has always been an active participant, promoter and beneficiary.

148. In order to strengthen top-level planning and supervision, I have set up a “Supervisory Group for Integrating into the Overall National Development Administration” to lead the SAR government and various sectors to more actively promote the integrated development of Hong Kong and the mainland, especially with mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area, and to deepen mutual coordination and cooperation through various special cooperation classes. The Government will continue to promote the construction of the Greater Bay Area by building a higher level of connectivity, promoting breakthroughs in policy innovation, co-building broader rules and institutional connections, and accelerating the collaborative development of innovation, technology and industry.

Combining mainland land resources and Hong Kong's air transport advantages to expand the logistics industry

149. The “Hong Kong International Airport Dongguan Airport Center” is the best example of the development of an innovative cooperative mechanism. Investment and construction by Hong Kong combines the logistics advantages of Hong Kong Airlines with the advantages of mainland land and human resources to reduce operating costs and cargo processing time. It is a model example of complementary advantages. We will work with the Dongguan Municipal Government to promote the development of a permanent airport center.

Promoting Greater Bay Area Airport Cluster Collaboration to Expand Business Network

150. Combining the advantages of Hong Kong International Airport and Zhuhai Airport, we will achieve mutual benefit through measures such as strengthening direct passenger transportation services “via Zhuhai-Hong Kong” and promoting joint international cargo business with Zhuhai City.

Strengthen the professional qualification recognition mechanism

151. We and Guangdong Province have successfully established a job evaluation mechanism for the first batch of engineering majors in Hong Kong, which will gradually be extended to other construction majors. We are also cooperating with Guangdong Province and Macau to establish Bay Area standards for skilled construction workers and personnel, and promote a “one test and multiple certification” arrangement. Passing the Bay Area Standard Examination can obtain vocational skills certificates from the three regions at the same time, improving the quality of construction industry training and cultivating talents throughout the Greater Bay Area.

Revitalize capital flows and jointly invest in the Greater Bay Area

152. Hong Kong Investment Management Co., Ltd. and relevant institutions in the Mainland are actively exploring opportunities for cooperation and jointly investing in promising, economically and socially beneficial projects in the Greater Bay Area in response to market developments.

Facilitate data circulation to facilitate enterprises

153. The “Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Mainland, Hong Kong) Cross-border Movement Standard Contract” facilitation measures, which were piloted in the banking, credit information and medical industries last year, are working smoothly in simplifying the flow of cross-border data compliance. We will extend measures to various industries to promote more convenient cross-border services for enterprises and data circulation in the Greater Bay Area.

Strengthening healthcare collaboration in the Greater Bay Area

154. Through cooperation between Guangdong and Hong Kong, expand the “Greater Bay Area Pilot Program for Elderly Health Care Vouchers” to nine mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area; use the eHealth Connect platform to expand cross-border medical record sharing; explore the “Greater Bay Area Clinical Trial Collaboration Platform” and “Real World Research and Application Center” using the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone to open up cross-border applications of data, samples, and pharmaceutical devices to accelerate the development of the medical innovation industry; and strengthen collaboration within the Greater Bay Area to promote specialist training in line with the international community.

Strengthening legal cooperation

155. We will continue to promote the implementation of efforts to optimize delivery arrangements for cross-border judicial documents, and promote the establishment of a Greater Bay Area Legal Information Platform and specific platform organizations for Greater Bay Area lawyers to promote professional exchanges and training.

Nurturing talents and expanding space for youth development

156. We have always encouraged universities in Hong Kong to run schools in the Greater Bay Area. So far, we have four branches. We have also set up the “Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Program” to encourage Hong Kong youth to work in the Greater Bay Area. We are exploring a two-way arrangement in this regard.

8. Benefit people's livelihood and add happiness

(1) Housing: Continued acceleration, volume improvement, quality improvement and efficiency

Increase the supply of public housing

157. Housing is an issue that citizens are very concerned about. The pace of land construction was slow in the early years, but thanks to the government's unremitting efforts, the number of public houses completed has gradually begun to reverse the “light and heavy” situation. Although we have found enough land to provide enough public housing units to fully meet long-term needs, and we have accelerated the efficiency of land construction, due to the fact that it takes a certain amount of time to build land and housing, in order to fill the gap of the past few years, I announced the launch of 30,000 innovative “simple public housing” units in 2022 to reduce the overall waiting time for public housing.

158. This measure has had some effect. Including “simple public housing”, the total supply of public housing will reach 189,000 units in the next five years (2025-26 to 2029-30), an increase of about 80% compared to the five-year period (2023-2026-27) when the current administration took office. In the past two years, the average waiting time for public housing has dropped by half a year, from a peak of 6.1 years to five and a half years. With the completion of “simple public housing” next year, the overall waiting period for public housing can be reduced by a total of one and a half years to four and a half years in 2026-27.

159. I have an urgent attitude to help citizens go upstairs. The “Early Upstairs Plan” proposed when I took office has so far enabled more than 2,000 families to go upstairs 5 to 9 months early, saving beneficiaries nearly 50 million yuan in rent expenses. A total of about 10,000 additional units will be ready for early construction in 2027-28 and up to 2027-28.

160. Furthermore, the first batch of “simple public housing” with about 2,100 units located on Yau Pok Road in Yuen Long will be completed in the first quarter of next year. A total of about 9,500 units will be completed next year, and all about 30,000 units will be completed before 2027-28.

Formulate a subunit rental system for residential buildings to solve the problem of “vacant housing”

161. The “Solution to the Housing Problem” working group has submitted a report. The government decided to adopt legislation to establish a rental system for subdivided units in residential buildings. The eligible units will be called “simple houses”.

162. Currently, the situation of different sub-units varies greatly, including in terms of fire protection, ventilation, area, and even whether there is a separate kitchen toilet or combined kitchen and toilet, it is necessary to establish minimum standards to ban inappropriate units. Currently, about 110,000 households live in sub-units, which shows that there is an actual demand for sub-units. Since the total rental income from renting out the original unit after splitting it up is much higher than renting out the entire undivided unit, the owners have a great financial incentive to operate this type of leasing. Appropriate regulations will allow rental “simple housing” to meet market needs in line with standards.

163. A subdivision unit of a substandard residential building must be converted into a standard “simple house”, which must be confirmed and certified by a professional. Otherwise, the owner will be held criminally liable for renting out the unqualified unit, and the guests will not be held legally liable. We will give owners of existing subdivision units of residential buildings time to carry out the required works. The law will set a grace period during which no enforcement action will be taken against illegal leasing. The Government will establish a registration system for this purpose, so that registered landlords can enjoy a grace period. The registration system only accepts the registration of existing subunits in rental residential buildings; however, new subdivisions entering the market must apply for certification as “simple houses” that meet the standards before they can be rented out, so there is no need for a grace period for renovation. Since new subdivision units entering the market must be certified as “simple houses” that meet the standards, and existing registered units must be converted into “simple houses” that meet the standards. Otherwise, it is illegal for owners to continue to rent out unqualified units after the grace period has passed, and the relevant units will be banned in an orderly manner, so the number of subdivided units in unqualified residential buildings will gradually decrease until they are cleared to zero.

164. In order to give the current owners and residents of split units time, the Government will set a sufficient grace period, and will handle residential buildings in an orderly manner in batches in line with the supply of “simple housing” in the market and the supply and policy of public housing. The Secretary for Housing will be authorized by law to decide when to take enforcement actions against which sub-units in an orderly manner according to the actual situation after the grace period is over.

165. The government's proposed standards for “simple rooms” include having a window, a separate toilet, and an area of not less than 8 square meters. The Chairman of the Working Group, the Deputy Secretary for Finance, and the Deputy Chairman of the Committee, the Secretary for Housing, will announce details and consult with the Legislative Council and stakeholders to formulate measures such as the content of the legislation and the registration schedule.

Complete the Home Buying Ladder

166. The Housing Authority will further improve and enrich the home buying ladder to respond to the public's demand for property purchases, including:

(i) Adjust the ratio of public housing (including the Green Form Occupancy Plan (Green Home)) and subsidized sales units — The Housing Authority is reviewing public housing projects to be completed in the middle to late ten years, with the goal of gradually adjusting the ratio of public housing to subsidized sales units from the current 7 to 6 to 4;

(ii) Increase opportunities for repeat buyers to buy and sell units — starting with the next phase of Green Home and Home Housing, an additional lottery number will be provided to applicants who have applied for the same type of subsidized unit sales plan twice in a row and were unsuccessful in purchasing units; and

(iii) Accelerate the circulation of public housing units — The Housing Authority will tighten policies for wealthy public housing households, increase additional rents for wealthy households and reduce income limits for wealthy households, so that public resources can be used appropriately for applicants in need of help. At the same time, the ratio of green to white housing will be adjusted from the current 4 to 6 to 5 to 5 to encourage more public housing tenants to buy homes.

Combating the misuse of public housing

167. The Housing Authority has stepped up its crackdown on the misuse of public housing in recent years. In the past two years, the Housing Authority has taken back a total of 5,000 public housing units that have been abused and violated leases or housing policies, which is equivalent to building a medium-sized housing estate, with remarkable results. The Housing Authority will launch the “Public Housing Resources Reward Program” in January next year to provide rewards to those who provide accurate information to report the misuse of public housing and find out more cases of abuse.

Promoting public housing reconstruction

168. The Housing Authority is carrying out 11 redevelopment plans. The results and details of the redevelopment of Choi Hung Estate will be announced within this year, and the redevelopment plans for Sai Wan Estate and Ma Tau Wai Estate will be announced next year.

Stabilize the supply of familiar land for private housing

169. According to the “Long-term Housing Strategy”, the demand for private housing is 132,000 units in the next ten years, and the government will prepare land for about 80,000 private housing units over the next five years.

Relaxation of the maximum amount of property mortgage loans

170. Considering the latest economic and financial environment, on the premise of continuing to maintain the stability of the banking system, the HKMA will relax mortgage loan conditions for residential properties. Regardless of the value of the property, whether it is owned by a company, or whether the buyer “first installs”, the upper limit of the mortgage ratio will be adjusted to 70%, and the upper limit of the contribution to income ratio will be adjusted to 50%. For non-residential properties, the relevant maximum mortgage ratio and maximum contribution-to-income ratio will also be adjusted to the same level.

Further improving building safety and building management

171. Through the “Building Management Professional Consultancy Service Program”, the Home Affairs Department has assisted in the establishment of about 100 owners' corporations in nine regions with a large number of “three no buildings” over the past two years. The plan was rolled out to the whole of Hong Kong in mid-year, and the contract was extended to three years.

172. Next year, the government will implement the “Joint Building Management” pilot scheme in selected communities and arrange for the same property management company to jointly manage neighboring old buildings, so that “Sanwu Building” and old buildings can obtain basic management services at reasonable costs.

173. In order to strengthen the deterrent against failure to comply with notices or orders on time and large-scale illegal construction works, the Government will propose amendments to the Buildings Ordinance and consult the public during this year. At the same time, it is also proposed to increase the types of exempted works and minor works in the Buildings Ordinance, pragmatically deal with low-risk small-scale unauthorised buildings, and submit proposed amendments in 2026.

174. The Government will create an age-friendly building environment and will put forward building design proposals that are conducive to the lives of the elderly and implemented in batches.

(2) Land construction, land development, and secure housing

175. The Government's determination to continue land development has not changed. It will also review the current situation and proceed with various projects in a steady and orderly manner. According to the latest forecast, some 3,000 hectares of land (i.e. “ripe land”) can be provided for development in government-led projects over the next ten years. When purchasing land, the Government will consider changes in the market so that the market environment can develop smoothly and healthily.

Further simplify procedures to reduce costs

176. The Government has vigorously streamlined land development procedures, and has issued an internal notice explicitly requiring all approval departments to act as facilitators when processing applications and strive to streamline the process, which has been welcomed by the industry. We will continue to dismantle and untie the wall, including:

(i) Make good use of industry resources to speed up efficiency — outsource drone surveys of building facades and unauthorised buildings and related analysis work to private companies, and replace the approval of smaller scale or temporary structures with professional certification;

(ii) Reduce construction costs — strengthen the role of the Project Strategy and Control Office under the Development Council by completing strategic research on construction costs and proposing improvement measures within this year, including increasing direct government procurement of building materials and products, reviewing building design standards, and promoting the local application of cost-effective building materials and construction technology at home and abroad; and

(iii) Expanding project coordination — Expanding the powers of the Project Promotion Office under the Development Council. In addition to coordinating departments to expedite approval of large-scale private residential and commercial projects, it also includes land use and related approvals for innovation, technology and other industrial development projects in Beidu.

Promote the development and application of construction technology to connect with national standards and Hong Kong standards

177. The Development Council established the “Hong Kong Institute of Building Science and Technology” in August this year to conduct applied research and development, set standards, provide testing and certification for innovative materials, construction methods and technology, lead the industry to innovate, and will also implement an “assembly and synthesis” manufacturer certification scheme to cooperate with the Mainland as a production base to promote the complementary advantages of the construction industry in Guangdong and Hong Kong.

178. Through the “Hong Kong Institute of Building Science and Technology”, we will also review and optimize the construction standards that Hong Kong has been using for many years with reference to overseas and national standards (“national standards”) to promote the local application of high-quality and cost-effective construction materials at home and abroad. Furthermore, when high-quality national standard building materials and technology are applied locally, it is also beneficial for national standards to open up the international market. We will also work closely with relevant agencies in Guangdong Province to promote the formulation of “Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Building Standards”.

179. The Housing Authority will increase the application of the second-generation “assembly and synthesis” construction method (MiC 2.0) jointly developed with scientific research institutions, simplify on-site installation processes, ensure construction safety, and clearly stipulate in contract tenders the use of construction robots to improve construction site safety and construction efficiency.

Initiate the EIA process for the Jiaoyizhou Artificial Island Project

180. The government will steadily advance the construction of an artificial island in Jiaoyizhou and begin the EIA process for the reclamation part of the project before the end of the year. The goal is to complete the approval process next year. The relevant detailed engineering design will be carried out within this year.

Accelerate urban renewal

181. The Urban Renewal Authority is conducting planning studies for Tsuen Wan and Sham Shui Po and will present an updated outline blueprint in the second half of next year. The Development Bureau is also studying the use of newly developed land to promote large-scale redevelopment projects in old districts, including transferring the land area ratio across districts and building more “dedicated housing estates”. The goal is to formulate proposals in the first half of next year.

182. We will extend a number of “revitalizing industrial buildings” measures that are about to expire until the end of 2027, including continuing to allow industrial building redevelopment projects to increase the land area ratio by up to 20%, etc., and continue to encourage the reconstruction and renovation of old industrial buildings.

(3) Promote transportation construction and promote the development of major transportation infrastructure

183. The Government is actively promoting the “Hong Kong Major Transport Infrastructure Development Blueprint”. Among them, Hung Shui Kiu Station and the main line of the North Ring Road will commence construction within this year and next year, respectively, and are expected to be completed in 2030 and 2034, respectively. At the same time, every effort is being made to promote cross-border railway projects, including the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Railway (Hung Shui Kiu to Qianhai) and the North Ring Road branch line to promote connectivity between Hong Kong and Shenzhen.

Build smart green mass transportation

184. We are fully promoting the three smart green mass transport system projects and reducing the implementation time. We invited suppliers and operators to submit letters of intent for the East Kowloon and Kai Tak projects in August this year, and will invite them to submit letters of intent for the Hung Shui Kiu/Ha Tsuen project within this year. Through innovative promotion and construction methods, we aim to complete the Kai Tak project three years earlier than previously estimated.

(4) Deepening the reform of the healthcare system

185. To enhance public health, improve health insurance and quality, and give full play to medical professional advantages, the Government will comprehensively review the positioning and goals of the healthcare system, reform the functions and division of labor of the Hospital Authority (HA), the Department of Health and the Primary Care Department, strengthen primary health care to promote health and disease prevention, improve public health care services, and promote private healthcare quality and fee transparency reforms to provide the public with high-quality, efficient and affordable medical service choices, and support talent training and technological innovation to continuously enhance Hong Kong's global status and regional advantage in medical care An innovation hub, an advanced medical center in Asia, a gathering place for medical talents, and a bridge for medical exchanges between China and foreign countries.

Promoting the development of primary care

186. The Government will promote the development of primary care in all aspects, including:

(i) Legislation to strengthen the primary care governance structure and empower the Primary Care Department to establish quality assurance and monitoring mechanisms;

(ii) Develop a community drug list and launch a community pharmacy scheme to cooperate with centralized procurement and community networks to make it easier for the public to obtain affordable primary care drugs;

(iii) Formulate health promotion strategies throughout the life cycle and develop public health management plans according to different ages and health conditions;

(iv) Reorganize maternal and child health and family planning services, strengthen fertility counselling and parenting education, and promote healthy childbearing;

(v) Strengthen the “Whole School Health Plan”, recommend targeted school-based measures for each school, improve physical activity and diet arrangements, and enhance students' physical and mental health;

(vi) Expanding more regional health stations into centres and expanding the service network to integrate the services of women's health centres and elderly health centres;

(vii) Expand the “Pilot Program for Joint Management of Chronic Diseases” to blood lipid screening; position the Hospital Authority's general outpatient clinics to provide comprehensive primary care services for disadvantaged groups;

(viii) Gradually develop risk-based screening plans for common cancers, including breast cancer screening, research on artificial intelligence to assist lung cancer screening, and implementing hepatitis B screening to prevent liver cancer;

(ix) Launch the “Youth Dental Care Co-Management Pilot Program” to encourage the prevention of dental problems, and the “Community Dental Support Program” to strengthen the provision of dental services to disadvantaged groups, including the elderly with financial difficulties, to take over the Community Care Fund dental subsidy program, and add preventive dental services to pre-school children; and

(x) Continue to implement tobacco control.

Enhancing public and private health services

187. The Government will enhance the Hospital Authority's public healthcare services, including:

(i) Explore fee structures and levels to encourage prudent use of services, direct resources to the most needy and critically ill patients, increase support for patients with financial difficulties, and enhance the financial sustainability of targeted subsidies for public health services;

(ii) Strengthen the centralized procurement of various online pharmaceutical devices in public healthcare, enhance bargaining power, and introduce effective and cost-effective innovative drugs into drug registers more quickly and proactively;

(iii) Using genetic data from the Hong Kong Genomics Centre to develop a catalogue of genetic and rare diseases to help clinical teams diagnose and treat early, and support relevant research and clinical trials to develop precision medicine;

(iv) Fully integrate various online pediatric departments in the Hong Kong Children's Hospital and develop more advanced medical services to better utilize the functions of children's hospitals;

(v) Finalize the second hospital development plan project and schedule to meet the development of Beidu and the needs of the region;

(vi) Construction of the first stroke center and the second chest pain center in accordance with national certification standards;

(vii) Optimizing the diversion system and referral arrangements for specialist outpatient clinics, including the establishment of interdisciplinary comprehensive outpatient clinics to eliminate the need for multiple referrals; and

(viii) Increase the number of cataract surgeries by at least 20%.

188. The Government will also enhance the quality and efficiency of medical services, including:

(i) Organize a professional platform to develop empirical clinical guidelines and study the establishment of public and private healthcare service quality and efficiency benchmarks;

(ii) To improve service efficiency and address healthcare inflation, prepare quality indicators for public and private healthcare systems, and explore legislation on transparency in private healthcare charges, and plan to consult the industry next year; and

(iii) The amendment requires all healthcare providers to deposit important health data into the public's personal health account, so that the public can have more complete electronic medical records to enhance the continuity of medical services.

Bringing together medical professionals

189. Promote the legal framework adopted earlier, actively introduce non-local doctors, nurses and dentists, and increase manpower. The Government will submit a draft next year to introduce qualified non-local training paramedical professionals.

Support preparations for the construction of a third medical school

190. In order to increase the number of doctors and facilitate Hong Kong's development into an international medical innovation hub, in addition to adding training courses to the two existing medical schools, the Government will support local universities in preparing a third medical school, and will set up a working group to invite universities interested in opening a new medical school to submit proposals. The Government will reserve land for the development of a new medical college building and a new comprehensive medical teaching and research hospital in Ngau Tam Mei, North Capital.

Promoting the development of traditional Chinese medicine and traditional Chinese medicine

191. The Government will seize Hong Kong's advantages in the healthcare system, regulatory system, standard-setting, clinical research and trade to develop Hong Kong as a bridgehead for the internationalization of traditional Chinese medicine and traditional Chinese medicine. The “Blueprint for the Development of Traditional Chinese Medicine” will be announced within next year, and the following measures will be implemented:

(i) Explore the application of big data, promote international research cooperation on the interaction between Chinese and Western medicines, discover more clinically significant evidence, and promote the internationalization of traditional Chinese medicine;

(ii) Expand collaborative services between traditional Chinese and Western medicine to the dominant diseases of traditional Chinese medicine such as “respiratory diseases” and “knee osteoarthritis”, and gradually promote “cancer treatment” to all hospitals;

(iii) The first traditional Chinese medicine hospital and permanent building of the Government Chinese Medicine Testing Centre are expected to be completed and put into service in stages next year; and

(iv) Organize the first “Hong Kong Traditional Chinese Medicine Culture Festival” to promote traditional Chinese medicine culture with the industry.

Promoting mental health

192. The Government will increase the provision of medical, educational and social collaboration services to promote the mental health of citizens, including:

(i) Formulate a “mental health hierarchical care model” — develop a multi-disciplinary hierarchical structure, from dealing with general emotional problems at the front line, to cases requiring follow-up, to more severe cases of psychiatric patients, clarifying the positioning and division of mental health services provided in each level of cases, such as faculty, staff, social workers, and healthcare workers, so that they can smoothly divide labor and carry out their duties;

(ii) Raise the community's attention to mental health — set a promotion theme for the “Mental Health Workplace Charter” every year to commend participating organizations that meet the standards; and increase the promotion of the “4Rs Mental Health Charter” in schools to more comprehensively enhance the mental health of students, staff and parents;

(iii) Strengthen support for children and young people — continue and optimize the school-based three-tier emergency response mechanism, launch a “Mental Health Literacy” resource package for high schools and middle schools; establish an immediate online support platform for youth emotional health in the second quarter of next year;

(iv) Assisting mentally recovered persons to integrate into the community — setting up a “Transition Support Service Team for Recovering Persons” to support those discharged from hospital waiting for midway dormitory services; the Social Welfare Department (SWD) will also establish additional integrated community centres for mental health; and

(v) Strengthen teacher training and parent education — strengthen teachers' ability to identify and support students with mental health needs at an early stage, and help parents master the knowledge and skills to care for their children's mental health.

(5) Building a caring and inclusive society

193. I value building a harmonious, stable, caring and inclusive community, so that disadvantaged communities and families in need can receive appropriate support. Social welfare spending has always been the highest in all categories of public expenditure. Spending on social welfare exceeds 300 million yuan per day. It can be seen that the government attaches importance to social welfare investment.

Precise Poverty Alleviation

194. The government adopted precise poverty alleviation policies and invested resources in those most in need of help, and the measures received a positive response from society. We'll focus on the following highlights:

(i) Expanding the “Co-Creation “Teen” Program - the third phase of the program will be launched within this year to recruit 4,000 students, promote self-development activities organized by young alumni association leaders, enhance teacher training, etc.;

(ii) Expanding the “Community Living Room Pilot Program” — 3 new community living rooms will be added next year in areas with a high concentration of “householders”, which is expected to benefit about 1,300 target households and provide services for about 200,000 people each year. Taking into account the 4 community living rooms that have already been launched, it is estimated that it can provide services for about 470,000 visitors per year for about 3,050 households;

(iii) Optimizing the “After-School Care Service Plan” — Starting this school year, the coverage has been extended from 50 primary schools to more than 110 elementary schools, so that students can stay in school and receive study support after school, making it easier for parents to work outside the home; depending on actual needs and results, we plan to encourage more schools to participate in the program in the 2025/26 school year, with no quota limit; and

(iv) Funding comprehensive social security assistance (CSSA) elderly to stay in homes for the elderly in Guangdong Province - A three-year pilot scheme will be launched next year to fund CSSA recipients who choose to retire in Guangdong to stay in designated homes in Guangdong. Each eligible elderly person will receive a monthly subsidy of $5,000, for a total of 1,000 places.

Caring for the elderly

195. The Government focuses on caring for the elderly in need and continues to enhance services for the elderly. The Government will increase the total number of vouchers for the “Residential Care Service Voucher Scheme for the Elderly” by 20% to 6,000, so that more frail elderly people can stay in homes of their choice without waiting in line to receive nursing services funded by the government.

196. We will enhance the “Guangdong Residential Care Service Plan” to provide more options and support for the elderly staying in homes for the elderly in Guangdong Province, including:

(i) Since November of this year, the number of nursing homes participating in the scheme has increased from the current 4 to 11;

(ii) Share part of the local medical expenses of the elderly participating in the scheme; and

(iii) Entrusting agencies to provide care services for the elderly participating in the scheme to help them adapt to life in Guangdong.

197. We are also working to improve the support and level of manpower in local nursing homes, to alleviate the shortage of manpower through the “Special Scheme for Importing Nursing Workers”, and comprehensively review the skills and qualifications requirements for nursing home health workers, such as adding promotion ranks for current health workers, and easing the academic requirements for nursing staff to enroll in advanced training certificate courses. The review is expected to be completed within this year.

198. In addition, the government is discussing with the banking industry possible ways to make it easier for Hong Kong elderly people in Guangdong and Fujian provinces to receive government grants through banks.

Support for caregivers

199. The government is focusing on supporting caregivers. In addition to providing caregiver allowances, resuscitation services, a one-stop information website and 182183 24-hour support hotline for caregivers, etc., the “Regional Service and Care Teams - Support for the Elderly and Caregivers Program” (scheme) began in Tsuen Wan and Southern Districts in March this year. The SWD will train “care teams” in the two districts to actively contact and identify needy residents and cooperate with support hotlines to provide support to the elderly and caregivers. The trial results have been good. Care teams trained by the Social Welfare Department visited 4,700 families in the past six months and referred about 900 cases to social welfare agencies for follow-up. Next year, we will expand the scheme to the whole of Hong Kong to provide support to the elderly and carers in the 18 districts.

200. We will also study the establishment of an interdisciplinary and cross-institutional database for carers of the elderly and caregivers of people with disabilities, with identification tools designed by the university team to identify high-risk cases and provide early intervention support.

Enhancing support for people with disabilities

201. We will further enhance rehabilitation services for people with disabilities, including:

(i) Set up 14 “integrated community rehabilitation centres” throughout Hong Kong, adding 1,280 service places to provide appropriate support according to the needs and rehabilitation progress of individual persons with disabilities through a comprehensive case management model;

(ii) Adding 90 peer support worker positions to enhance peer support for people with disabilities and their caregivers;

(iii) Establishing additional regional support centres for people with disabilities in the East New Territories; and

(iv) Increase the number of places for day, residential and pre-school rehabilitation services by about 1,040, and study the establishment of special child care centres in vacant kindergarten buildings.

202. To encourage and support the employment of people with disabilities, the Government will establish a “Caring Employer” medal to commend employers who actively hire people with disabilities, promote the establishment of more social enterprises employing people with disabilities, optimize the service and training models of sheltered workshops and comprehensive vocational rehabilitation service centers, and build a better vocational rehabilitation training ladder for people with disabilities.

Promoting women's development

203. There are quite a few Hong Kong women in leadership roles. To promote women's workplace development, we will establish a network with female leaders from all walks of life and launch “Friends, You Guide” to pair female college students with senior management mentors.

Support for working parents

204. To support working parents, I announced the establishment of 10 additional funded independent child care centres last year. The Government will add 1 more place to provide 100 day-care places and increase the number of “Neighborhood Support Child Care Scheme” service places by 20% to 2,500, increasing the number of beneficiaries to 25,000.

Protecting children

205. The Legislative Council has passed the Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse Ordinance, which requires professionals in the social welfare sector, education sector and health care sector to report serious cases of child abuse. To enhance parenting education, the Social Welfare Department will launch a pilot scheme to set up four “Community Parent-Child Centres” to promote parent-child interaction and teach parents positive parenting methods in a game-based manner to support families in need.

Support ethnic minorities

206. To support ethnic minorities to better integrate into the community, two additional ethnic minority support service centers proposed last year will be put into service within this year. Starting next year, the Government will hire an additional support service centre to provide interpretation and interpretation services for ethnic minorities to reduce the inconvenience of poor speech. The Education Bureau will step up support for non-Chinese speaking students (including ethnic minority students) in learning Chinese and parent assistance, including organizing after-school Chinese language classes, enhancing “online Chinese self-study resources”, organizing cross-school teacher learning communities, etc., and organizing parent education activities for parents of non-Chinese speaking students.

Caring team

207. The “care team” is an important service team for the government to improve the regional governance structure. The 452 “Caring Teams” in Hong Kong were fully launched last year. The “Caring Team” is diligent in providing a variety of care and support services. For example, it has visited a total of about 230,000 elderly households and needy households, and provided more than 22,000 simple homes or other types of support, which has been greatly appreciated by the public. The Government will regularize funding for the “Caring Team” and increase the amount of funding by 50% in the next round of funding to support the work of the “Caring Team”.