Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs visits Vietnam to promote youth exchanges between two places (with photos)

     The Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs, Miss Alice Mak, continued her visit to countries along the Belt and Road region in Hanoi, Vietnam, today (December 12).

     Miss Mak visited the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Children's Fund in Vietnam in the morning to meet with representatives of the United Nations agencies and volunteer interns participating in the United Nations Volunteers – Hong Kong Universities Volunteer Internship Programme. She expressed her gratitude to the agencies for offering internship placements as well as providing guidance and training to Hong Kong youths, thereby enabling them to develop their personal capabilities and contribute to the international community in the capacity of Chinese youth volunteers. Miss Mak encouraged the interns to seize the precious opportunities, gain experience through the volunteer internship programme, and to share their observations with other youths upon their return to Hong Kong.

     In the afternoon, Miss Mak separately visited the Secretary of Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union's Central Committee, Mr Nguyen Tuong Lam, and the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of China to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Mr He Wei, to exchange views on youth development work of the two places and issues of mutual concern.

     At the Christmas dinner organised by the Hong Kong Business Association Vietnam today, Miss Mak shared with attendees the vision and guiding principles of the long-term youth development work of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government. The Home and Youth Affairs Bureau (HYAB) promulgated the Youth Development Blueprint in late 2022, which put forward more than 160 concrete actions and measures on supporting youth development, and about 60 new measures were introduced last year to ensure the Blueprint progresses with the times and responds to the needs of young people in a timely manner. The Blueprint also stated that the Government will further strengthen the breadth and depth of the Mainland and international internship and exchange programmes, with a view to widening young people's global exposure and broadening their horizons. In 2024-25, the HYAB's overseas youth exchange and internship programmes are expected to provide a total of about 7 000 internship placements and 50 000 exchange places, among which around 60 internship placements and 520 exchange places will cover the Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries. She expressed hope to continue strengthening co-operation between Hong Kong and Vietnam and promoting youth exchanges between the two places.

     Miss Mak will depart for Hong Kong tomorrow morning (December 13).