Annual Report 2024

The President of the Legislative Council (“LegCo”) led a delegation comprising seven members of the Parliamentary Liaison Subcommittee to conduct a duty visit to three member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (“ASEAN”), namely Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore, from 12 to 18 May 2024.

As the first overseas duty visit of LegCo after the pandemic, its objectives were to gain first-hand knowledge about the latest developments of the above countries, tell China’s and Hong Kong’s good stories, and deepen cooperation and connections with the ASEAN countries, with a view to seeking opportunities for Hong Kong’s development while contributing to the high quality development of our country. The visit programme included hosting of a networking reception with the ASEAN community, courtesy calls on the relevant Chinese Ambassadors, meetings with Speakers and Members of Parliaments and relevant government departments and organizations, as well as various business associations, chambers of commerce and local Hong Kong businessmen, and visiting the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway.

During the visit, the LegCo Delegation not only shared the good stories about Hong Kong and strengthened Hong Kong’s ties with the ASEAN community, but also demonstrated the unique values that Hong Kong could bring to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (“RCEP”) and garnered support for Hong Kong’s early accession to RCEP. From the dialogue conducted and the insights gained, and guided by the “Five Connectivities” of the Belt and Road Initiative, the Delegation proposed a lot of policy recommendations in eight areas, namely (a)‍building a shared future: strengthening economic, trade and people-to-people ties with ASEAN countries; (b) ‍leveraging Hong Kong’s position as an international financial and trade centre; (c) ‍accelerating the development of new quality productive forces: innovation and technology and digital economy; (d) ‍elevating Hong Kong’s tourism and cultural landscape; (e) ‍embracing opportunities by promoting Hong Kong’s legal and dispute resolution services; (f) ‍unlocking housing success through strategic long-‍term planning; (g) ‍promoting Hong Kong as an international education hub and facilitating youth exchange; and (h) ‍fostering patriotism and building an inclusive society.

[📄Report of the visit]

Following a duty visit to three member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in May 2024, the President of LegCo led the LegCo Delegation for the second time in a year on a duty visit to Japan from 21 to 24 December 2024. Seven members of the Parliamentary Liaison Subcommittee (“the Subcommittee”) participated in the visit.

Japan is a member of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (“RCEP”) and also an important trading partner of Hong Kong. During the four-day visit, the Delegation established closer ties with Members of the National Diet of Japan, government officials and business sector to canvass their support for Hong Kong’s accession to RCEP. The Delegation also shared the good stories of Hong Kong, emphasizing the stable and safe environment following the implementation of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, along with a well-established legal system and an internationalized business environment. These efforts are intended to consolidate and enhance Hong Kong’s role as a “super-connector” and “super value-adder” for businesses around the world to access the Mainland market through Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, the visit programmes covered a wide range of areas, keeping delegation members abreast of the latest developments of Japan’s economy and trade, industrialization, food safety, agriculture and fisheries, culture, and tourism, and facilitating more cooperation opportunities between Hong Kong and Japan. The Delegation also paid a courtesy call on the Chinese Ambassador to Japan to explore how Hong Kong could further leverage its unique strengths under “one country, two systems” to promote economic and people-to-people exchanges with Japan.

The first-hand information obtained during the duty visit has enabled Members to put forward various policy recommendations to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government on injecting new impetus into the economy and better integrating into the overall national development, as well as capitalizing on Hong Kong’s advantages to deepen international exchanges and cooperation, with a view to expanding connections between the nation and the rest of the world.

[📄Report of the visit]