A hundred drones painted the night sky over the Shing Mun River on 30 June to celebrate the 21st anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland.
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region celebrates 21st anniversary and enjoys robust economic growth
On 1 July, Hong Kong celebrated the 21st anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) with a flag-raising ceremony attended by the Chief Executive Mrs Carrie Lam and senior government officials. The evening before, a hundred drones painted the night sky over the Shing Mun River in the city.
The Chief Executive gave speeches at an official reception in the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and at a launching ceremony organised by the Hong Kong Celebrations Association at Victoria Park that also featured a Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area exhibition, as well as a dragon and lion dance extravaganza.
The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, speaks at the 21st anniversary of the establishment of the HKSAR celebration series launching ceremony organised by the Hong Kong Celebrations Association at Victoria Park on 1 July.
Mrs Lam emphasised that the HKSAR Government upheld the principle of “one country, two systems” during the past years. Hong Kong actively participated in the Belt and Road Initiative and planned for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area in collaboration with the Guangdong and Macao governments. She appealed to the Hong Kong citizens to remain focused and stand united to ensure that the best is yet to come for Hong Kong. Mrs Lam also referred to the sincerely adopted “we care”, “we listen” and “we act” approach of the current-term Government which has brought about stability in society and rebuilt public trust in the Government. She also praised the importance of nurturing young people with an international perspective.
Over the past year, Hong Kong enjoyed robust economic growth, with a 3.8 per cent increase in real Gross Domestic Product in 2017 being followed by an even higher 4.7 per cent in the first quarter of 2018. On top, the unemployment rate dropped to a 20-year low of 2.8 per cent and people’s earnings registered real improvements in general. All economic indicators in the last couple of months showed that Hong Kong’s economic performance remained impressive, providing the ground for the continuous improvement of people’s livelihood in one of the safest cities in the world.
Please click here for a short video “Hong Kong – A Year in Review” that reviews Hong Kong's economic performance and the key policy initiatives delivered over the past 12 months.