Press Relase - June 26, 2007

Hong Kong’s long-standing relationship with Canada, particularly with the province of British Columbia, will further develop with the strong foundation built over the last 10 year since the return of Hong Kong to China in 1997, according to the Director of the Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office (HKETO) in Canada, Mr Bassanio So.

Speaking at a reception hosted by the HKETO in Vancouver today (Tuesday) to mark the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Mr So said the burgeoning economy in China and the close relationship between Hong Kong and Canada had created tremendous business opportunities.

While emphasizing the successful implementation of the principle of “One Country, Two Systems” in the last decade, Mr So told the 500 guests at the reception that the strong economic and social ties between Hong Kong and Canada “will be instrumental in supporting Canada’s initiative to double the level of its trade and investment relationship with China by 2010 and British Columbia’s Pacific Gateway strategy.”

The HKETO director cited the facts that:
- Over 500,000 people from Hong Kong live in Canada today, and many of them choose Vancouver, Richmond and other neighboring cities.
- Reciprocally, Hong Kong is also home to the largest Canadian business community in Asia with about 250,000 Canadian passport holders in Hong Kong.
- There are about 150 Canadian companies maintaining branches or subsidiaries in Hong Kong, and another 450 are represented by distributors, agents or joint venture partners.

“Strong Hong Kong-Canada links have nurtured the ever-growing and vibrant economic partnership between us,” he said. “Hong Kong and British Columbia are both gateways – Hong Kong is the gateway to Asia, while Vancouver acts as a gateway for Asian businesses to access the North American market.”

Mr So said he strongly believed that British Columbia, Mainland China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region could further strengthen the already close relationship to bring a win-win situation to all.

Dignitaries and VIPs attended this evening’s event included: Chinese Consul General Mr Yang Qiang; federal Member of Parliament the Hon Raymond Chan; Government Caucas Chair and Member of Legislative Assembly in British Columbia, Mr John Yap; Parliamentary Secretary for the Asia-Pacific Initiative, Mr Richard Lee; and city councillors from Burnaby, Richmond and Vancouver.

A photo display on Hong Kong highlighting “One Country, Two Systems”, “The Hong Kong Spirit”, “Gateway to China”, “Business Hub”, “International City” and “Hong Kong Attractions” produced by the Information Services Department was also staged at the reception.

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For further information, please contact Stephen Siu, Assistant Director, of the Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office at Tel: 416-924-5425, e-mail: [email protected], or Senior Information Officer Elison Chu at Tel: 416-924-5544, e-mail: [email protected].

Picture shows a “Cake Cutting” ceremony to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the return of Hong Kong to China performed by (from left to right) Burnaby Councillor Mr Garth Evans, Parliamentary Secretary for the Asia-Pacific Initiative of British Columbia, Mr Richard Lee; Member of Parliament the Hon Raymond Chan; Chinese Consul General Mr Yang Qiang; Mr Bassanio So, Director of the Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office in Canada; Mr John Yap, Government Caucus Chair of the Province of British Columbia; and Vancouver City Councillor Mr George Chow.

Click here to download a Chinese version of this press release in PDF format.