DCS begins visit programme in Guangzhou (with photos/videos)

     The Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Cheuk Wing-hing, arrived in Guangzhou this afternoon (September 12) to start his visit programme.
 
     Mr Cheuk first met with Deputy Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office (HKMAO) of the State Council Mr Wang Linggui and Vice-Governor of the People's Government of Guangdong Province Ms Feng Ling to exchange views on deepening the co-operation between Guangdong and Hong Kong, and promoting the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA).
 
     Witnessed by Mr Wang, Ms Feng and Mr Cheuk, the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, and the Director General of the HKMAO of the People's Government of Guangdong Province, Ms Li Huanchun, signed the Agreement on Civil Service Staff Exchange and Collaboration Programme with the Mainland Municipalities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to deepen exchanges between civil servants of both places in different fields and support the high-quality development of the GBA. Mr Cheuk said that this Civil Service Staff Exchange Programme, jointly-organised with Mainland cities of the GBA, is the first civil servant exchange programme since the full resumption of normal travel between Hong Kong and the Mainland. The programme provides in-depth exchange opportunities for civil servants from both places to broaden their horizons and promote mutual understanding between the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government and the governments of GBA Mainland cities.
 
     In the evening, Mr Cheuk attended the opening ceremony of the third GBA Culture and Arts Festival at Guangdong Friendship Theatre. In his speech, Mr Cheuk said that this year's GBA Culture and Arts Festival is significant as it is the first large-scale cultural event jointly organised by Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao after the full resumption of normal travel between the Mainland and Hong Kong. Since the organisation of the festival in 2019, the cultural departments of the GBA have been promoting arts and culture exchanges and collaborations through a wide range of exhibitions and performances, advocating Lingnan culture and Chinese culture.
 
     Mr Cheuk added that the HKSAR Government is formulating at full speed a Blueprint for Arts and Culture and Creative Industries Development to enhance the ecosystem for the industries, and that the Government is fully committed to developing Hong Kong into an East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange with support from the National 14th Five-Year Plan. He stressed that the HKSAR Government attaches great importance to arts and cultural exchanges and interaction with cities in the GBA. The HKSAR Government will host the fourth GBA Culture and Arts Festival next year and is eagerly looking forward to working with cities in the GBA to present a rich array of cultural and artistic projects, enhance the cultural soft power of the GBA and achieve the goal of jointly developing a cultured bay area.
 
     Mr Cheuk will continue his visit to Guangzhou tomorrow (September 13) and head to Macao in the afternoon to attend the Welcome Banquet of the Business Conference on GBA Development before returning to Hong Kong.