Officials: National plan to bring vitality, opportunities for HK

The National 14th Five-Year Plan will bring Hong Kong tremendous opportunities and further accelerate its pace of integrating into national development, central government and Hong Kong officials said at a high-level talk on Monday.

The talk, which was held by a cross-departmental central government delegation, aims to help Hong Kong society better understand the national development strategy.

During the event, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said the plan will bring Hong Kong "continuous vitality and once-in-a-lifetime opportunities".

Hong Kong's development is closely tied with the nation's development, Lam said, adding that relying on the motherland and opening to the world are fundamental to Hong Kong's future success.

Lam said the plan, which supports Hong Kong in consolidating and enhancing its competitive edge, has inspired Hong Kong community and received positive responses from society.

With positive changes brought by the National Security Law and the electoral system improvements, she is confident that Hong Kong can firmly grab opportunities brought by the plan.

Huang Liuquan, the deputy head of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, said that the 14th Five-Year Plan showed that the central government attaches great importance to Hong Kong's economic development and livelihood improvement.

In the plan, the nation also supports Hong Kong to integrate into its overall development in various areas, such as finance and technology, Huang said.

The central government will continue to introduce measures benefiting Hong Kong for a brighter prospect amid the nation's overall development, he added.

Ning Jizhe, deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission, said in a video speech that with the nation's greater support, Hong Kong is sure to gain more opportunities and achieve better development in the fields of finance, innovation and technology, and green technology industry.

Noting that Hong Kong has played a unique and important role in national development and served as a bridge between the mainland and the world, Ning said Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland will jointly develop by complementing each other's advantages.