i-CABLE News reported that Hong Kong’s first five-year plan and a new policy address were due to be announced on Wednesday.
Janice Tse Siu-wa, Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, said the national 15th Five-Year Plan had set a blueprint and action framework for Hong Kong’s development over the next five years. She said the Hong Kong government was actively aligning its strategy with national strategies and that the policy address and five-year plan were closely connected.
Tse was speaking on 14 September at a luncheon held by Hong Kong businesswomen to mark the 77th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. She gave a presentation on the national plan and Hong Kong’s five-year planning.
She described the plan as an important arrangement for Hong Kong to adapt proactively, make use of the advantages of “one country, two systems” and find its position within national development. The aim, she said, was for Hong Kong to make better use of its own strengths.
Tse also stressed that planning would not change the nature of Hong Kong’s market economy or replace the market. Instead, she said, the five-year plan would strengthen the combination of an effective market and a proactive government.
She pointed to Hong Kong’s common-law system, international business environment, free port, free movement of capital and talent, and internationally oriented professional services as advantages. Alongside the national economy, industrial system, innovation capacity and large market, she said, those features could give Hong Kong a role as a bridge and platform linking China with the wider world.