Speeches

Reception to celebrate HKSAR 20A in Bandar Seri Begawan Brunei

Following is the speech by the Director-General of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Jakarta, Mrs DO PANG Wai Yee, at the reception organised by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Jakarta to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei today (August 28):

Ambassador Yang, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good evening.

It gives me great pleasure to join you all this evening in Bandar Seri Begawan, in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. I am very glad to see old friends and meet new faces tonight.

The theme of our 20th anniversary celebrations is “Together • Progress • Opportunity”. With the hard work of Hong Kong people, and strong support from our Central Government, Hong Kong has been moving forward in great strides under the principle of “One country, Two systems” since the handover in 1997.

I would like to outline briefly to you what we have achieved in the past 20 years.

As part of China, Hong Kong rides on the Mainland’s rapid economic growth and our proximity to the huge Mainland market. Under the “Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement”, Hong Kong’s products and services enjoy preferential access to the Mainland – and this applies equally to international businesses established in Hong Kong, including those from Brunei.

We also offer unparalleled access to the Mainland’s capital markets and financial products through channels like the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect, the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect, as well as the Bond Connect launched last month. Thriving as an international financial centre, we are the world’s largest offshore Renminbi business hub, accounting for 70 per cent of offshore Renminbi trade settlement.

At the same time, we enjoy a high degree of autonomy and maintain our own economic system. Our rule of law, open and free market, efficient and clean public sector, freedom of speech and travel, our diversified pool of multi-cultural and talented professionals, to name but a few, are no doubt the building blocks for Hong Kong’s success, which we will continue to cherish and nurture.

These are the reasons why the number of regional headquarters and offices set up by overseas and Mainland companies in Hong Kong has increased by 50 per cent in the past 20 years. Many Mainland companies use Hong Kong as a base to expand into overseas markets. One obvious example is the Bank of China. It is using Hong Kong as a regional headquarters to operate their branches in a number of ASEAN countries including Brunei.

Despite regional and global challenges over the years, our real Gross Domestic Product had registered a cumulative growth of more than 80 per cent.

Our achievements are recognized internationally. We have kept the trophy of the world’s freest economy by the US-based Heritage Foundation for 23 consecutive years, and have been crowned the world’s most competitive economy for the second year by the International Institute for Management Development in Switzerland.

In the years to come, Hong Kong will progress further by playing an important role as a connector under China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

To prepare ourselves for new opportunities, for instance, we are expanding our airport to a three-runway system. We are completing a 30 km bridge between Hong Kong, Macau and the western part of the Pearl River Delta. In addition, we are building an express rail link that connects Hong Kong with Mainland China’s high speed rail network.

Hong Kong offers a friendly and accessible environment to all, including our friends from Brunei and other ASEAN members. ASEAN as a whole is Hong Kong’s second largest trading partner. Bilateral merchandise trade value between Hong Kong and ASEAN grew by a cumulative 72% over the past ten years, reaching US$107 billion in 2016, which accounts for 11% of Hong Kong’s total trade.

With a common goal to bring our relations to new heights, Hong Kong and ASEAN have been negotiating a free trade agreement. After three years of hard work, we are looking forward to signing the agreement later this year.

To show our commitment towards ASEAN, a new Economic and Trade Office was set up in Jakarta last year. We will work closely with you all for the mutual benefits of ASEAN and Hong Kong.

Ladies and Gentlemen, there is much for us to celebrate the progress that we have made so far. And together we shall be able to go much further. We appreciate your friendship and support. Let’s join hands to bring progress and opportunities to the region to echo the theme of our 20th anniversary celebrations.

Thank you for being with us tonight. I wish you all a very enjoyable evening.

Ends/Monday, August 28, 2017