President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the swearing-in ceremony of the sixth-term government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, July 1, 2022. (PHOTO / HKSAR GOVERNMENT)

Hong Kong’s civil servants and members of the community attended seminars on Monday to study President Xi Jinping’s important speech on July 1, as celebrations marking the 25th anniversary of the city’s return to the motherland continued on the Chinese mainland and around the world.

The Civil Service Bureau held a session for the second consecutive week to discuss the spirit of Xi's speech. Addressing more than 200 participants, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu reiterated the significance of the president’s speech, calling it a milestone, as it provides crucial guidance for the special administrative region’s governance in the next five years.

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Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu encouraged top officials and civil servants to build up the core essence of President Xi Jinping's speech in their work, help to strengthen governance capacity and efficiency, and focus on solving livelihood issues to create harmony and stability in the community

Lee encouraged top officials and civil servants to build up the core essence of Xi's speech in their work, help to strengthen governance capacity and efficiency, and focus on solving livelihood issues to create harmony and stability in the community.

The Civil Service College launched a seminar themed on Hong Kong’s sustainable development. Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan told the seminar that reducing emissions and sustainable development are in line with the “four proposals” laid down in Xi's speech.

She hoped the seminar would help enlighten civil servants with how to put the proposals into practice in respect of emission reduction and sustainable development and in their own work.

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District Offices in Wong Tai Sin, Kwai Tsing, Yau Tsim Mong and Kwun Tong have also held sessions at which keynote speakers were invited to share and exchange their views on the spirit of Xi’s speech.

Events commemorating the 25th anniversary of the HKSAR’s establishment have also been held on the mainland.  A roving exhibition featuring Hong Kong’s development in the past 25 years was launched in Chengdu, Sichuan province, on Monday.

The exhibition, admission to which is free, is hosted by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Chengdu. The trade office has been organizing a series of events in regions it serves on the mainland,  including receptions for local residents, as well as outdoor advertising in Chengdu, Chongqing, Xi’an, Guiyang, Lhasa and Xining.

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The HKETO in London supported a program to showcase seven Hong Kong films in the United Kingdom capital from July 8 to 10, including Anita and Comrades, Almost a Love Story.

The HKETO in Brussels, Belgium, has concluded a month of HKSAR 25th anniversary celebrations, with gala receptions and business luncheons held in Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Portugal and Ireland.

As part of the festivities, the office will also support the Asian Summer Film Festival in Spain, as well as concerts by the Asian Youth Orchestra in Italian cities, at the end of this month and in early August.