The SmartHK Suzhou-Hong Kong High-Quality Development Co-operation Conference will be held in Nanjing on 28 August

The SmartHK Suzhou-Hong Kong High-Quality Development Co-operation Conference will be held in Nanjing on 28 August. On 20 August, the organizer Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and the co-organisers Jiangsu Provincial Department of Commerce and the Provincial Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office jointly held a press conference in Nanjing to introduce the highlights of the event and the cooperation between Jiangsu and Hong Kong.

With the theme of “Innovation and Cooperation, Cooperation and Innovation, and Jointly Promoting High-quality Development”, the conference will feature a theme conference and four thematic sessions on the themes of financial services, technological innovation, green and sustainable development, and cultural and creative licensing. Lu Jian, Chief Representative of the HKTDC East and Central China, said that the conference aims to explore innovative cooperation models between Jiangsu and Hong Kong, jointly create new application scenarios, expand new markets, accelerate the development of new quality productivity, and promote the joint development of Jiangsu and Hong Kong.

The conference invited experts and representatives of leading enterprises in the fields of financial services, technological innovation, green and sustainable development, and cultural and creative licensing to share their cutting-edge observations on different industries. The conference will also feature Hong Kong’s design, professional services and I&T exhibitions, Smart+ start-up proposals, and business matching. Hong Kong entrepreneurs will visit different parks and enterprises in our province to gain an in-depth understanding of the latest economic development in Jiangsu.

The Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee and the Jiangsu Provincial Government attach great importance to economic and trade co-operation with Hong Kong, and in order to further promote economic and trade co-operation and exchanges between Jiangsu and Hong Kong, the mechanism of the Joint Conference on Co-operation between Jiangsu and Hong Kong was established in 2014. So far, the joint meeting has been successfully held 11 times. Focusing on the latest trends and requirements of the economic and social development of Jiangsu and Hong Kong, Jiangsu and Hong Kong have continuously expanded the areas of cooperation, explored the depth of cooperation, innovated cooperation methods, and deepened cooperation in investment and trade, the Belt and Road Initiative, third-party markets, science and technology, finance, cultural tourism, green and low-carbon, modern service industries, young talents and other fields, and achieved fruitful results. Sun Jin, Deputy Director of the Provincial Department of Commerce, said that Hong Kong’s position as the largest source of foreign investment and the largest investment destination in Jiangsu has been continuously consolidated. Under the premise of maintaining stable trade between the two sides, from January to June this year, the total import and export trade between Jiangsu and Hong Kong was US$12.18 billion, an increase of 34.1% year-on-year, and the growth rate was the highest among Jiangsu’s major foreign trade partners.

“SmartHK is the annual flagship event organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) in major cities in the Mainland since 2011, with the aim of promoting Hong Kong’s quality professional services and I&T advantages, and promoting exchanges and co-operation between Hong Kong and other provinces, municipalities and enterprises in the Mainland. This year’s conference was held in Jiangsu, which reflects the good foundation and deep roots of cooperation between Jiangsu and Hong Kong. Shen Yanfei, deputy director of the Provincial Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, said that in recent years, the cooperation between Jiangsu and Hong Kong has shown a good situation of bright spots, rich levels and remarkable results, which is reflected in the further deepening of high-level exchanges between Jiangsu and Hong Kong, the further strengthening of mechanism construction, the closer exchanges and cooperation, and the further optimization of the business environment, especially in exchanges and cooperation. It is believed that through the joint efforts of all parties, the conference will be a complete success and make outstanding contributions to the high-quality development of Jiangsu-Hong Kong cooperation.