Premier Li Keqiang met with Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), in Beijing on Dec 17, and heard a report on the current development of Hong Kong and the work of the local government.

Over the past year, Premier Li said, the HKSAR government has made new progress and achievements under the leadership of its chief executive.

Against an international landscape that is undergoing complicated changes, the stable economic growth of Hong Kong — a free port and a separate customs territory — was hard-won, he said.

The central government fully recognizes the great efforts made by the chief executive and the local government to engage social forces into the construction of the Guangdong-HK-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Belt and Road Initiative, develop innovative technologies and address livelihood issues, according to the Premier.

The central government will stick to the policies of “one country, two systems”, “Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong” and a high degree of autonomy, and will fully support the administration of HKSAR government and the chief executive on the basis of the Constitution, as well as the Basic Law of Hong Kong to achieve long-term prosperity, stability and development, the Premier said.

At a meeting recently with a delegation from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions to celebrate the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening-up, President Xi Jinping expressed his hope for people from all walks of life in Hong Kong and Macao.

Premier Li hoped that the HKSAR government will seize opportunities from a new round of reform and opening-up, combine national needs with Hong Kong’s advantages, maintain stable economic growth, continuously improve people’s lives and put in place various policies that benefit the people.

He also called for efforts to build Hong Kong into an international innovative technology center, cultivate new sources of economic growth, sharpen the overall competitiveness of Hong Kong, make new contributions and break new ground in the new round of reform and opening-up.

Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, for her part, said that 2018 has been an extraordinary year for Hong Kong, which has made new progress in socioeconomic development with sustained support from the central government.

Hong Kong will continue to develop its economy, improve people’s livelihoods and take an active part in the construction of the Guangdong-HK-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Belt and Road to facilitate the new round of reform and opening-up, she said.

Vice-Premier Han Zheng and State Councilor Xiao Jie also attended the meeting.