The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, met with the Mayor of Seoul, Korea, Mr Park Won-soon, at Government House this afternoon (February 1). The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Edward Yau, was also present.
Welcoming Mr Park's visit to Hong Kong, Mrs Lam said she was very pleased to meet him again in Hong Kong. She said she visited Seoul some seven years ago as Secretary for Development and was impressed by the city's infrastructure developments, urban planning and heritage conservation, in particular the two successful river restoration projects in Seoul, namely the restoration of Cheonggyecheon River and the Hangang Renaissance Project, which served as valuable reference in her subsequent promotion of urban renewal and waterfront development initiatives in Hong Kong.
Mrs Lam noted that Hong Kong and Korea have close ties, with continuous economic and trade co-operation and people-to-people exchanges, adding that Korean popular culture appeals to many Hong Kong people. She said that Hong Kong has been committed to developing cultural and creative industries in recent years and a number of cultural facilities popular with both local residents and visitors have been launched, including the Xiqu Centre in the West Kowloon Cultural District and the Blue House Cluster, which won the Award of Excellence in the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation. Mr Park has visited both places during his stay in Hong Kong. Holding the belief that there is room for more economic and trade and cultural co-operation between Hong Kong and Korea, Mrs Lam expressed the hope that an Economic and Trade Office would be set up in Seoul as soon as possible to foster further exchanges between the two places in various areas.
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