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China Daily

Extra> 20th Anniversary of Hong Kong's Return to China> Content
Saturday, July 22, 2017, 09:28
Largest HK youth group to visit Zhejiang
By Luis Liu in Hong Kong
Saturday, July 22, 2017, 09:28 By Luis Liu in Hong Kong

Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor talks to students at her alma mater, St Francis' Canossian College, in Wan Chai. (Provided to China Daily)

Hong Kong will send its biggest-ever youth delegation to a mainland province at the end of this month as 2,000 young people from the city go to Zhejiang on an exchange trip as part of the 20th anniversary celebrations of Hong Kong’s return to the motherland.

The exchange program will become a regular event and more than 10,000 Hong Kong young people are expected to participate over the next three years

The exchange program will become a regular event and more than 10,000 Hong Kong young people are expected to participate over the next three years, Zhejiang’s head of the official relation promotion body – the provincial united front work department – Feng Zhili said.

Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, whose family came from Zhejiang, attended the launch ceremony early this month. She hoped the participants can increase their knowledge about the affluent province and know more about the whole Chinese mainland.

She called on Hong Kong’s young people to grab the opportunities brought by the country’s rapid growth and make a contribution to the city and country.

To achieve that, all should know more about the country’s current conditions and strengthen their competitiveness, Lam said.

The six-day tour will start on July 30 and take the city’s youngsters to 11 cities in the province – including Hangzhou, Ningbo, Wenzhou, Shaoxing and Zhoushan.

Hangzhou, home of internet giant Alibaba’s headquarters, is seen as one of the China’s innovation bases. Trip organizer the New Home Association (NHA), a social care organization in Hong Kong, plans to let the students feel Zhejiang’s creative atmosphere.

NHA Chairman Hui Wing-mau said the country is in a golden era of development, especially in innovative industries. “New technology integrated with Chinese culture offers Hong Kong youth a unique opportunity to develop,” Hui said.

This is not NHA’s first such tour. Since 2015, the organization has funded trips by more than 4,500 Hong Kong people, especially young people, to visit Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong and Fujian. The trips aimed to let the young people see the country’s development in person and witness the traditional culture. 

luisliu@chinadailyhk.com


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