Secretary for Environment and Ecology Visits Beijing for Ecological Cooperation and Food Safety Initiatives

SEE begins visit to Beijing

The Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan, began his visit to Beijing. He met with officials of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) and the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China (GACC), and visited facilities of the State Grid Corporation of China (State Grid), the Science and Technology Research Center of China Customs and a food enterprise in Beijing yesterday (September 8) and today (September 9).

Yesterday morning, Mr Tse met with Vice Minister of the MEE Mr Li Gao and had in-depth exchanges on the work of the Environment and Ecology Bureau (EEB) in environmental protection, including projects related to carbon neutrality and green transformation in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), as well as the work progress of building a pilot zone for a Beautiful China in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), "Beautiful Bays", "Zero Waste Bay Area" and Green Belt and Road.

Mr Tse said that the HKSAR will further promote green living and green and low-carbon transition, strengthen ecological and environmental protection, build a green and livable city, as well as advance new energy, green technology and innovative applications. The HKSAR will also capitalise on its unique advantages of having strong support of the motherland and being closely connected to the world under the "one country, two systems" principle, and actively integrate into the country's overall development.

He added that the HKSAR Government will, as always, under the guidance and leadership of the MEE, work with other GBA cities to continuously promote policy innovation and technical exchanges, play well the roles of "super connector" and "super value-adder" connecting the Mainland and international markets, and contribute to building a Beautiful China and a Beautiful Hong Kong, in order to achieve national green transition and high-quality economic development.

Afterwards, Mr Tse visited the State Grid Simulation Center, the State Grid Center of Metrology and the State Key Laboratory of Renewable Energy Grid-Integration of the State Grid, and was briefed by the State Grid representatives on key technologies on power grids, electricity meters and research outcomes of renewable energy grid integration.

This morning, Mr Tse visited a food enterprise in Beijing to learn about its standardised production, quality traceability system and experience in product exports.

In the afternoon today, Mr Tse met with Vice Minister of the GACC Mr Zhang Baofeng. Both sides signed the Memorandum of Understanding between the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China and the Environment and Ecology Bureau of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government on the Registration and Administration of Manufacturers of Food Import and Export (the MOU). Under the MOU, the GACC and the EEB will co-operate on the batch registration of manufacturers for food exported from Hong Kong to the Mainland and food supplied to Hong Kong from the Mainland. They will also strengthen exchanges on safety supervision policies and regulations for manufacturers of food imports and exports, and provide timely updates regarding laws and regulations, regulatory procedures, technical standards, and hygiene requirements concerning the management of overseas manufacturers of food imports and exports, thereby safeguarding food safety in both Hong Kong and the Mainland.

Mr Tse then visited the Science and Technology Research Center of China Customs to be briefed on the Center's testing work and technology regarding food safety and discuss scope for future co-operation. He also met with representatives of a state-owned enterprise with its core business in modern agriculture and agri-food trade.

Mr Tse will attend the Asia-Pacific Forum on EnergySustainable Development and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Energy Ministerial Meeting tomorrow (September 10) and on September 11.

The Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan (centre), visited the Science and Technology Research Center of China Customs in Beijing today (September 9) and was briefed by staff on the center's testing work and technologies related to food safety. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan (second right), visited a food enterprise in Beijing today (September 9) to learn about its standardised production, quality traceability system and experience in product exports. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan (third left), visited the State Grid Simulation Center of the State Grid Corporation of China (State Grid) in Beijing yesterday (September 8), and was briefed by the State Grid representatives on key technologies of power grids. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan (second right), visited the State Grid Center of Metrology of the State Grid Corporation of China (State Grid) in Beijing yesterday (September 8), and was briefed by the State Grid representatives on key technologies of electricity meters. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan (third right), met with Vice Minister of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment Mr Li Gao (second left) in Beijing yesterday (September 8). Looking on are the Director of Environmental Protection, Dr Samuel Chui (fourth right), and the Commissioner for Climate Change of the Environment and Ecology Bureau, Mr Sammy Yeung (second right). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

SEE begins visit to Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

SEE begins visit to Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

SEE begins visit to Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

SEE begins visit to Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

SEE begins visit to Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

SEE begins visit to Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Director of Health signs co-operation agreement on research for testing and standards of Chinese medicines with NMPA and attends Beijing-Hong Kong Health Cooperation Exchange Conference co-hosted with BJHC in Beijing

The Director of Health, Dr Ronald Lam, led a delegation from the Department of Health (DH) to Beijing today (September 9) to pay a visit to the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA). In addition to exchanging information on the latest progress in promoting scientific regulation and innovation in drugs and medical devices, both sides also signed a co-operation agreement to further deepen collaborations and exchanges in testing technologies of Chinese medicine (CM) and the internationalisation of CM standards. On the same day, the DH and the Beijing Municipal Health Commission (BJHC) co-hosted the Beijing-Hong Kong Health Cooperation Exchange Conference, with a view to jointly advancing the high-quality healthcare development in Hong Kong.

Witnessed by the Commissioner of the NMPA, Mr Huang Guo, Dr Lam and the Director General of the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Affairs Office of the NMPA, Ms He Li, signed a co-operation agreement on research for CM testing and standards to further extend and deepen collaboration in this area, which has spanned more than a decade.

Under the co-operation agreement, both sides will strengthen exchanges and collaborations in the standards and technologies of CM covering research on and formulation of standards for Chinese Materia Medica, CM decoction pieces, proprietary CM and CM granules; the development of testing technologies; as well as safety tests and risk control for the quality of CM, through multiple channels such as expert meetings, seminars and training. Both sides will also deepen talent training and technical interfacing in accordance with the co-operation agreement, with a view to promoting CM standards and testing technology innovation in alignment with international standards.

Dr Lam thanked the NMPA and its affiliated institution, the National Institute for Drug Control (NIDC), for their longstanding support for CM development in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The permanent building of the Government Chinese Medicines Testing Institute under the DH commenced operations late last year. The Chinese Medicines Herbarium inside has received professional technical guidance from the NMPA and the NIDC, and was endowed with more than 300 valuable and representative specimens of Chinese Materia Medica commonly used nationwide, enriching its collections and enhancing public understanding of CM.

Dr Lam remarked that the Outline of the National 15th Five-Year Plan has promulgated to advance the inheritance and innovation of CM and to promote its global expansion. The DH will actively leverage its technical strengths in CM testing and quality control to become an important anchor for CM going global, and to strengthen the exploration, utilisation and research of global medicinal resources. This co-operation arrangement will extend the longstanding close collaboration, and further enhance testing expertise level as well as quality and safety control of CM to promote the development of Hong Kong as a bridgehead for CM going global.

Regarding scientific regulation and innovative development of drugs and medical devices, Dr Lam also introduced the establishment of the Hong Kong Centre for Medical Products Regulation, the preparatory work for the 30th Global Harmonization Working Party Annual Meeting and Technical Committee Meeting scheduled for December this year, and the progress of the 2026 annual bilateral work plan, covering issues on strengthening cross-boundary drug regulation and enhancing training and exchanges between the two sides in different areas such as primary evaluation of new drugs and Good Clinical Practice (GCP) for clinical trials of pharmaceutical products.

In the afternoon of the same day, upon the invitation of the BJHC, the DH co-hosted the annual Beijing-Hong Kong Health Cooperation Exchange Conference during the 2026 China International Fair for Trade in Services. Other co-organisers included the Hong Kong Hospital Authority, the Beijing Municipal Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Beijing Municipal Disease Prevention and Control Administration, the Beijing Hospitals Authority and the Cross-straits Medicine Exchange Association. The theme of this year's conference is "Beijing and Hong Kong, Join Hands for a Shared Healthy Future", focusing on discussions of smart healthcare, transformation of scientific achievements, inheritance and innovation of CM and public health emergency response.

Dr Lam said that this year is significant as it marks the beginning of the National 15th Five-Year Plan. Under the principle of complementing each other in bringing about mutual benefits, the DH will continue to promote exchanges and collaborations with Beijing, actively integrate into and serve the overall national development, and implement a health-first development strategy to fully leverage Hong Kong's distinctive advantages of having strong support of the motherland and being closely connected to the world to contribute to a "Healthy China".

At the meeting, DH representatives shared how, under the framework of building a health big data ecosystem, Hong Kong's Electronic Health System (eHealth) connects the public and private healthcare sectors to enable realtime sharing of electronic health records, empower citizens to manage their own health, and optimise the allocation of healthcare resources through bigdata analytics. They also introduced Hong Kong's CM regulatory regime and the formulation of CM standards and advancing innovations in testing. Representatives also highlighted Hong Kong's commitment to strengthening primary healthcare under the guiding principle of "prevention first, community-based". The reform is being deepened through chronic disease co-care, intensified tobacco control, and the development of community networks. These measures aim to integrate health management into daily life and encourage citizens to take on the role of being the "first person responsible" for their own health.

During Dr Lam's stay in Beijing, he will also attend some activities on Health and Wellness Service at the 2026 China International Fair for Trade in Services, and pay a visit to related public health authorities.

Director of Health signs co-operation agreement on research for testing and standards of Chinese medicines with NMPA and attends Beijing-Hong Kong Health Cooperation Exchange Conference co-hosted with BJHC in Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Director of Health signs co-operation agreement on research for testing and standards of Chinese medicines with NMPA and attends Beijing-Hong Kong Health Cooperation Exchange Conference co-hosted with BJHC in Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Director of Health signs co-operation agreement on research for testing and standards of Chinese medicines with NMPA and attends Beijing-Hong Kong Health Cooperation Exchange Conference co-hosted with BJHC in Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases