Chief Executive John Lee today met Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Kanat Bozumbayev who is leading a delegation to Hong Kong for the Alatau City Investment Round Table scheduled to take place tomorrow.
Recalling his recent trip to Central Asia, Mr Lee said he met President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov and two Kazakh Deputy Prime Ministers, establishing high-level liaison between the governments. He also thanked the Kazakh Government for the high-level hospitality and meticulous arrangements for the visit.
During the Kazakh trip, the two sides signed eight co-operation documents at the government level, as well as 53 co-operation agreements and memoranda of understanding beyond the government level, covering such areas as trade and economic co-operation, investment, finance, technology and aviation. Mr Lee said he was delighted to follow up on these outcomes with Mr Bozumbayev today, and looks forward to deepening co-operation in the future.
The multiple outcomes achieved during the visit demonstrate Hong Kong’s role as a functional platform for the Belt & Road Initiative, as the city plays its roles as a “super connector” and “super value-adder”, the Chief Executive highlighted, adding that the launch of direct flights from Hong Kong to Almaty, Kazakhstan, in the first quarter of next year will boost people-to-people exchanges.
Mr Lee said he looks forward to Hong Kong and Kazakhstan achieving complementary advantages and co-ordinated development. He also remarked that enterprises in Kazakhstan are welcome to make good use of Hong Kong’s premier financial, innovation and technology platforms, as well as its world-leading professional services, to explore business opportunities.
At the same time, Hong Kong will further help local and Mainland enterprises to go global and discover opportunities in Central Asian countries like Kazakhstan, the Chief Executive added.