Students Celebrate GBA Development with Itinerary Design Competition Awards Ceremony

EDB and CMAB organise Award Presentation Ceremony for "Dreams to Greater Bay Area Come True" Itinerary Design Competition under Mainland Exchange Programmes for Students

The Education Bureau (EDB) and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) Development Office of the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau (CMAB) have organised the Award Presentation Ceremony for Celebration of the 15th Anniversary of the Founding of the "Passing on the Torch" National Education Activity Series Platform: "Dreams to Greater Bay Area Come True" Itinerary Design Competition under Mainland Exchange Programmes for Students today (May 23). Teachers and students of the winning teams will be fully subsidised to join award-winning tours modeled on the itineraries of the champion teams, and attend the sharing sessions for experience sharing upon completion of the tours to deepen students' understanding of the development of the GBA.

The competition encourages secondary students to design routes for Mainland exchanges covering the GBA cities as destinations. Through the activities, students are encouraged to gather information to deepen their understanding of the interconnectivity, history and culture, innovative technology, and development opportunities of GBA cities, thereby broadening their horizons and cultivating their affection for the country.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Under Secretary for Education, Dr Sze Chun-fai, thanked the school sector for their active participation and support. More than 500 itinerary design proposals have been received, with nearly 2 000 students participating in the competition. He praised the students for their innovative designs, thoughtful itinerary planning and diversified themes, including intangible cultural heritage, aerospace technology, patriotic education and national security education, etc. The destinations cover different cities in the GBA, which demonstrate the students' deep understanding of GBA cities.

The competition is the celebration of the 15th anniversary of the founding of the "Passing on the Torch" National Education Activity Series Platform. Dr Sze expressed his gratitude to various executive chairpersons for their continuous leadership and the Central People's Government Offices in Hong Kong and eminent individuals from various sectors in Hong Kong for their strong support. More than 630 000 primary and secondary students have benefited since the establishment of the platform. Mainland exchange programmes for students cover 22 provinces, four autonomous regions and four municipalities. He also thanked the GBA Development Office for co-organising the competition with the EDB, providing students with more opportunities to learn about the history, culture and development opportunities of the GBA, which will widen their horizons and foster their sense of national identity.

Other officiating guests at the award presentation ceremony included the Commissioner for the Development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Ms Maisie Chan; Second-level Inspector of the Youth Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Mr Zhang Guolai; the Chairperson of the Assessment Committee for the "Dreams to Greater Bay Area Come True" Itinerary Design Competition, Mr Lung Chee-ming; and various executive chairpersons of the "Passing on the Torch" National Education Activity Series Platform.

Based on the champion itineraries of the junior secondary school winner, CUHK FAA Thomas Cheung Secondary School, and the senior secondary school winner, Chiu Lut Sau Memorial Secondary School, the EDB will organise two award-winning tours to Zhaoqing, Guangzhou and Foshan respectively in July 2025, and provide full subsidies for teachers and students of the winning teams to join the trips. Teachers and students of all winning teams will attend the sharing sessions to exchange experiences from their participation in the trips.

The list of awardees has been uploaded to the website of the "Passing on the Torch" National Education Activity Series Platform (www.passontorch.org.hk/en/index.html) and the designated webpage (www.bayarea.gov.hk/itinerary-design-competition/en/home/index.html).

EDB and CMAB organise Award Presentation Ceremony for "Dreams to Greater Bay Area Come True" Itinerary Design Competition under Mainland Exchange Programmes for Students Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

EDB and CMAB organise Award Presentation Ceremony for "Dreams to Greater Bay Area Come True" Itinerary Design Competition under Mainland Exchange Programmes for Students Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

EDB and CMAB organise Award Presentation Ceremony for "Dreams to Greater Bay Area Come True" Itinerary Design Competition under Mainland Exchange Programmes for Students Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

EDB and CMAB organise Award Presentation Ceremony for "Dreams to Greater Bay Area Come True" Itinerary Design Competition under Mainland Exchange Programmes for Students Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

EDB and CMAB organise Award Presentation Ceremony for "Dreams to Greater Bay Area Come True" Itinerary Design Competition under Mainland Exchange Programmes for Students Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Speech by CS at Nobel Heroes Forum: Shaping Science and Future

Following is the speech by the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, at the Nobel Heroes Forum: Shaping Science and Future today (January 12):

Dr Wong (Chairman of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) Council, Dr Peter Wong), Professor Zhang (President and Vice-Chancellor of the HKU, Professor Zhang Xiang), Mr Turner (Executive Director of Foundation Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings, Mr Nikolaus Turner), distinguished Nobel Laureates, esteemed scientists,ladies and gentlemen,

Good morning. It is my great pleasure to join you today for the Nobel Heroes Forum: Shaping Science and Future.

To our Nobel Laureates – we are truly privileged to have you with us. You represent the very best of human curiosity and perseverance. Your ground-breaking work expands our understanding of the universe, lights the path for future discovery, and inspires generations. Thank you for joining this extraordinary gathering.

And to all our distinguished guests from around the world – a very warm welcome to Hong Kong.

Today's dialogue is more than an academic event. It is a powerful convergence of the world's finest scientific minds, right here in a city that is determined to play its part in global innovation.

Hong Kong's mission is clear and unwavering: to become a premier international innovation and technology centre. A hub where top scientists, scholars and entrepreneurs can thrive, collaborate and serve the world.

To achieve this, the Government is fully committed. We are building a world-class ecosystem and nurturing the talent to power it.

First, we are building the infrastructure for greatness.

We have established a strategic I&T framework centred on three major I&T (innovation and technology) parks and five key research and development institutions.

Building on the success of the Science Park and Cyberport, we officially launched the Hong Kong Park of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone last month.

The Hetao Co-operation Zone is a major co-operation platform in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area under the National 14th Five-Year Plan. The Hong Kong Park is envisioned as a world-class hub for technological innovation, connecting the Chinese Mainland with the international community, and serving as an important source for fostering new quality productive forces.

Together with our five key R&D (research and development) institutions focus on frontier technologies, these developments will create more favourable conditions for Hong Kong to attract global I&T resources and talent.

Second, we are investing decisively.

We back our words with resources. We have launched significant funding schemes across the entire innovation chain.

To support excellent and impactful research, the Research Grants Council (RGC) under the University Grants Committee administers more than 20 competitive research grant and fellowship schemes.

Furthermore, last year we launched the 3 billion HK dollars Frontier Technology Research Support Scheme to empower ground-breaking basic research led by world-class researchers and academics.

To accelerate the midstream and downstream development, we rolled out three separate 10 billion HK dollars initiatives to drive the commercialisation of R&D outcomes and new industrialisation.

Third, and most crucially, we are nurturing and attracting top talent.

Talent is our ultimate driving force. We are expanding our talent pool through multiple strategies.

On nurturing young research talent, the Government has launched the Young Collaborative Research Grant to support early-stage researchers in leading and managing collaborative research. We are also actively fostering research collaboration between Hong Kong, the Chinese Mainland and overseas research funding agencies through operating various Joint Research Schemes. These partnerships not only foster academic exchange but also provide opportunities to nurture researchers in exploring new frontiers in their respective fields.

On attracting global talent, the RGC Junior Research Fellow Scheme has supported some 300 doctoral graduates from Hong Kong and around the world to pursue research careers at our universities.

Our international research flagship, the InnoHK research clusters, is also there to bring together brilliant minds from all over the world to conduct world-class scientific research. To date, our two existing InnoHK research clusters – one focusing on healthcare technology and another on AI and robotics – have successfully built links with over 30 world-class universities and research institutes from 12 economies, pooling together around 3 000 researchers locally and across the globe.

To go further, the Government is now expediting the development of the third InnoHK research cluster, with the focus on sustainable development, energy, advanced manufacturing and materials.

Our strategy follows a powerful cycle: promoting technology with talent, leading industries with technology, and attracting talent with industries.

And we are seeing results. Hong Kong ranks third globally in "Technology" in the World Digital Competitiveness Ranking. The Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou cluster ranks first in the 2025 Global Innovation Index Ranking of the World's Top 100 innovation clusters.

Our startup community has grown nearly fivefold in the past decade, producing homegrown unicorns.

This progress is no accident. It is built on Hong Kong's unique strengths. Under "one country, two systems", we enjoy unwavering national support and unparalleled global connectivity. Our robust rule of law, free-flowing capital and vibrant multicultural society make Hong Kong the perfect incubator for scientific exploration and technological breakthroughs.

To every scientist, researcher and innovator here today: Hong Kong is open for you. We provide the platform, the funding, the freedom and the connections to turn visionary ideas into reality.

We invite you to build your legacy here. To join us in shaping not just the future of Hong Kong, but the future of science for humanity.

On this note, let the dialogue begin. I look forward to the fruitful and inspirational exchanges. Thank you.

Source: AI-found images