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Algernon Yau to visit France

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

Secretary for Commerce & Economic Development Algernon Yau will depart this evening for France, where he will visit Toulouse, Bordeaux, Cognac and Paris to promote Hong Kong’s favourable business environment and its advantages as a wine and liquor trading hub. 

During the trip, the commerce chief will meet representatives of the French business sector and attend business roundtables to exchange views with local wine and liquor producers.

He will also attend the China Forum 2025, organised by Business France, to promote Hong Kong’s unique role as a gateway to the Mainland market.

Mr Yau will return to Hong Kong on the morning of June 26. During his absence, Under Secretary for Commerce & Economic Development Bernard Chan will be Acting Secretary.

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IT chief tours Dutch startup incubator

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

Secretary for Innovation, Technology & Industry Prof Sun Dong toured a startup incubator and community workspace and met local officials during a visit to the Netherlands earlier this week.

Prof Sun paid a visit to the Amsterdam Venture Studios Startup Village. Using converted containers as offices, the village currently comprises 35 startups focused on artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum technology, and aims to promote interaction, collaboration and knowledge sharing among them.

At the village, Prof Sun visited Omni Wind Tech BV, a Dutch startup that is developing compact wind turbines for commercial and community settings. He was briefed on its strategies and core technologies, and learned about its efforts to promote sustainable development through green innovation.

Prof Sun also visited Nearfield Instruments, a supplier of advanced metrology solutions for the semiconductor industry. The company focuses on high-precision measurement technology to support manufacturing in the high-end nano-electronics industry.

Later on, Prof Sun met Deputy Director-General for Foreign Economic Relations in the Netherlands’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs Yvette Van Eechoud to exchange views on promoting innovation and technology (I&T) collaboration.

Prof Sun said that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government attaches great importance to maintaining relations with European countries, including the Netherlands.

He emphasised that as an international city, Hong Kong has long played the role of a super connector and super value-adder. He added that the current-term Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government is committed to developing the city as an international I&T centre and that there is therefore broad scope for collaboration between Hong Kong and the Netherlands on I&T.

The technology chief also called on Charge d’affaires of the Chinese Embassy in the Netherlands He Shiqing and briefed him on Hong Kong’s efforts to deepen international exchanges and co-operation and achieve better integration into China’s national development.

Prof Sun thanked the embassy for supporting enhanced co-operation between Hong Kong and the Netherlands in I&T development and for helping to attract enterprises and investment.

Prof Sun’s visit to the Netherland has concluded and he will return to Hong Kong tomorrow morning.

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SCED to visit France

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

SCED to visit France　　
     During the trip, Mr Yau will meet with the French business sector and attend business roundtables to exchange views with local wine and liquor producers. He will also attend the China Forum 2025 organised by Business France to promote Hong Kong’s unique role as a gateway to the Mainland market. 
 
     Mr Yau will return to Hong Kong on June 26 morning. The Under Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Dr Bernard Chan, will be the Acting Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development during Mr Yau’s absence.
Issued at HKT 12:29

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Xia Baolong to visit HK

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

Chief Executive John Lee revealed today that CPC Central Committee Hong Kong & Macao Work Office Director and State Council Hong Kong & Macao Affairs Office Director Xia Baolong will visit Hong Kong from tomorrow until Sunday.

Mr Lee told reporters ahead of the Executive Council meeting this morning that Mr Xia will attend the “5th Anniversary of Promulgation & Implementation of Hong Kong National Security Law Forum”, which is being organised by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government.

Mr Xia will also take the opportunity to observe economic and social developments in Hong Kong.

The Chief Executive thanked Mr Xia for his continued concern and support for Hong Kong and extended his warmest welcome to Mr Xia ahead of his visit.

Me Lee added that the Hong Kong SAR Government endeavour to ensure a smooth visit.

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Director of Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of CPC Central Committee and Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of State Council Mr Xia Baolong to attend 5th Anniversary of Promulgation & Implementation of Hong Kong National Security Law Forum in Hong Kong

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     The Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, Mr Xia Baolong, will visit Hong Kong from June 18 to 22. He will attend the 5th Anniversary of Promulgation & Implementation of Hong Kong National Security Law Forum organised by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government. He will also take the opportunity to inspect the latest economic and social development of Hong Kong.
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     The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, expressed gratitude to Mr Xia for his continued concern and support for Hong Kong. He also extended his warmest welcome to Mr Xia for visiting Hong Kong for the Forum and inspection. The HKSAR Government endeavours to support and facilitate the inspection, ensuring the smooth conduct of the visit.

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SITI continues visit to Netherlands (with photos)

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

The Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong, continued his visit to the Netherlands on June 15 (Amsterdam time).

Professor Sun visited a start-up incubator and community workspace, Amsterdam Venture Studios Startup Village, built with containers being turned into offices. The village currently brings together 35 start-ups focusing on AI and quantum technology, with an aim to promoting interaction, collaboration and knowledge exchange among science, business and start-up ecosystem.

Professor Sun visited Omni Wind Tech BV in the community, a Dutch start-up that focuses on the innovative development of patented power generation technology by compact wind turbines to promote the high-performance application of wind energy in commercial and community settings. He was briefed on the company’s development strategies and core technologies, and learned about its practical mode of promoting sustainable development of clean energy through green innovation.

Professor Sun then visited Nearfield Instruments to learn about its latest technologies and global businesses. The company is a supplier of advanced metrology solutions for the semiconductor industry, focusing on high-precision measurement technology to support manufacturing in the high-end nano-electronics industry.

In the afternoon, Professor Sun met with Deputy Director-General for Foreign Economic Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, Ms Yvette Van Eechoud, to exchange views on promoting innovation and technology (I&T) collaboration. Professor Sun said that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government attaches great importance to maintaining relations with European countries, including the Netherlands. He emphasised that as an international city, Hong Kong has all along been playing the roles and functions of “super connector” and “super value-adder”. The current-term Government is committed to developing Hong Kong into an international I&T centre and there is a broad room of collaboration between the two places in the fields of I&T.

Professor Sun also called on Charge d’affaires of the Chinese Embassy in the Netherlands, Mr He Shiqing, to brief him on Hong Kong’s efforts in “deepening international exchanges and co-operation and better integration into the national development”. Professor Sun expressed his gratitude to the Embassy for supporting the enhanced co-operation between Hong Kong and the Netherlands in I&T development and attracting enterprises and investments.

Professor Sun concluded his visit to the Netherlands and will return to Hong Kong in the morning on June 18 (Hong Kong time).

                 

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Dragon boat races in Toronto promote athleticism and cultural heritage (with photos)

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Dragon boat races in Toronto promote athleticism and cultural heritage  
Organised by the Toronto Chinese Business Association, the mega event attracted thousands of people to celebrate the Chinese tradition that blends athleticism and cultural heritage.
 
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Festival, the Acting Director of the Toronto ETO, Mr Gavin Yeung, remarked that the Toronto ETO is pleased to continue supporting the Festival. “Hong Kong brought this water sport to Canada almost four decades ago,” he said. “The dragon boat race signifies the strong and enduring ties between Hong Kong and Canada.”
 
Mr Yeung shared that Hong Kong, as the events capital of Asia, stands as a globally connected city that hosts world-class events, including mega sports competitions, international conferences and cultural exhibitions, attracting tourists around the world. 
 
     “A notable highlight is the newly opened Kai Tak Sports Park,” he said. “Spanning over 28 hectares, this multipurpose venue is the largest sports, entertainment and mega event complex in Hong Kong.” Highlighting the concept of “tourism is everywhere” in Hong Kong, he encouraged Canadians to visit Hong Kong and discover the many exciting developments in Asia’s world city.
 
The Toronto ETO also set up a Hong Kong pavilion with a mini-exhibition to showcase the history of dragon boating in Hong Kong. Cheering for their favourite teams while exploring the cultural favours, visitors enjoyed an unforgettable weekend.
 
Besides Toronto, the Toronto ETO also celebrated dragon boat festivals in different cities across Canada. The festivals in Vancouver and Ottawa will be held from June 20 to 22 (Vancouver and Ottawa time) respectively. 
Issued at HKT 5:00

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Secretary for Health meets Chairman of Changchun Committee of CPPCC

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

 The Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, met with the Chairman of the Changchun Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Mr Gao Zhiguo, today (June 16) to have in-depth exchanges on the development of biomedicine and Chinese medicine (CM) in the two places.

Professor Lo said, “Biomedicine development and medical innovation are not only directly related to people’s life and health, but also important national policies representing immense new quality productive forces. The Resolution of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee on Further Deepening Reform Comprehensively to Advance Chinese Modernization adopted by the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee pointed out the need to deepen the reform of medical and healthcare system and emphasised the support to the development mechanisms for innovative drugs and medical devices. In addition, the Development Plan for Shenzhen Park of Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone promulgated by the State Council also put forward the co-ordinated development of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and Shenzhen under ‘one zone, two parks’ to promote the innovative application of advanced biomedicine technologies with concerted effort.”

“The HKSAR Government is determined to fully utilise the institutional advantages of ‘one country, two systems’ of the HKSAR and our professional strengths in the healthcare sector to develop Hong Kong into an international health and medical innovation hub, thereby enabling the innovative medical technologies to go global and attract foreign investment, and promoting new quality productive forces in biomedicine.”

The Chief Executive put forward the initiative of developing Hong Kong into an international health and medical innovation hub in his 2023 and 2024 Policy Address. The HKSAR Government will expedite the reform of the approval mechanism for drugs and medical devices and enhance the translation of innovative biomedical research results into clinical applications, such as jointly establishing the Greater Bay Area (GBA) Clinical Trial Collaboration Platform in concerted efforts by the GBA International Clinical Trial Institute in the Hong Kong Park of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone and the GBA International Clinical Trials Center in the Shenzhen Park to integrate resources and technologies to provide one-stop clinical trial support for medical research institutions; establishing a Real-World Study and Application Centre to open up the extensive and standardised local medical databases to support clinical diagnosis and treatment, new drug development, and public health research, and integrate real-world data generated through the special measure of using Hong Kong-registered drugs and medical devices used in Hong Kong public hospitals in the GBA to accelerate approval for registration of new drugs in Hong Kong, the Mainland, and overseas; preparing for the establishment of the Hong Kong Centre for Medical Products Regulation (CMPR) to progress towards the “primary evaluation” approach; and taking forward preparatory work for legislating for the statutory regulation of medical devices to dovetail with the timetable for the establishment of the CMPR.

Regarding CM, the HKSAR Government is committed to developing Hong Kong into a bridgehead for the internationalisation of CM, and encourages co-operations between schools and research institutions of the two places in various areas such as CM education and research. Hong Kong’s first CM hospital will commence services in phases starting from the end of this year, which will serve as a key platform for promoting clinical scientific research collaboration in proprietary Chinese medicines development, synergising with the GBA Clinical Trial Collaboration Platform to facilitate the commencement of internationally recognised multicentre clinical trials, thereby further accelerating the translation of CM research findings.

Representatives of the Health Bureau, the Department of Health and the Hospital Authority also attended the meeting.

Ends/Monday, June 16, 2025
Issued at HKT 20:50
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CHP investigates cluster of Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

CHP investigates cluster of Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae 
The CHP will continue to put the RCHE under medical surveillance and investigate the cluster.
 
Enterobacteriaceae (for example, Escherichia coli and Klebsiella) are common pathogens that can cause infections at different body sites including urinary tract infections, intra-abdominal infections or bacteraemia. CPE are enterobacteriaceae that produce carbapenemase – an enzyme that can deactivate carbapenems and other beta-lactam antibiotics such as penicillins. These bacteria are commonly resistant to multiple antibiotics, limiting therapeutic options, and may render severe clinical infections difficult to treat. The range of diseases associated with CPE varies from asymptomatic carriage to potentially life-threatening or fatal infections. The level of risk depends on which part of the body is affected by the infection and the general health of the patient.Issued at HKT 20:05

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Opening Ceremony of Hospital Authority Hong Kong Breast Milk Bank held (with photos)

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

     The Hospital Authority (HA) Hong Kong Breast Milk Bank (HKBMB) held its opening ceremony today (June 16), marking a milestone in neonatal care and demonstrating the joint commitment of the Government, the HA and the community to protect the most vulnerable lives and give them a healthy start in life.