The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Development Promotion Centre (Promotion Centre) of the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau held a luncheon sharing session on Start-ups and Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) in Guangzhou today (September 26). The sharing session aimed to provide start-ups with the latest information on ESG development and trends, assist start-ups in formulating ESG policies, and promote sustainable business development.
 
     The Commissioner for the Development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Ms Maisie Chan, attended the sharing session in Guangzhou and delivered a welcome speech. Ms Chan said that ESG and sustainable development are the foci of global attention. Apart from investors, clients of enterprises are also paying more attention to environmental protection, civic social responsibility and corporate governance. For enterprises, the formulation of ESG strategies to achieve sustainable development has transitioned from being optional to becoming an essential requirement. Today's sharing session was organised by the Promotion Centre to provide information in this regard to start-ups.
 
     Ms Chan emphasised that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government is committed to providing support to Hong Kong residents and enterprises pursuing development in the Mainland cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), as well as enhancing the promotion of the enormous opportunities GBA development has to offer. The Promotion Centre, established in Guangzhou in April last year, seeks to better understand the development needs of Hong Kong residents and enterprises in the Mainland cities of the GBA and to provide practical assistance through various forms of activities. The Promotion Centre encourages Mainland talent and enterprises to capitalise on Hong Kong's unique advantages and status under the principle of "one country, two systems", and to develop overseas markets through Hong Kong, thereby fully leveraging Hong Kong's dual roles in "going global and attracting foreign investment".
 
     The sharing session today, held at Guangzhou O₂ PARK, received support from the Human Resources and Social Security Department of Guangdong Province and attracted nearly 100 start-up representatives. In addition to keynote speeches, practical case studies were presented on how enterprises could achieve sustainable development in terms of environmental, social and corporate governance. At the sharing session, four representatives from Hong Kong enterprises also shared their experiences in implementing ESG practices across cultural and creative, environmental protection, architectural design, and educational technology industries. There was an interactive session as well to discuss strategies for implementing the best ESG initiatives to help enterprises stand out from their competitors.
 
     Moreover, participants of the sharing session took the opportunity to visit O₂ PARK, a city revitalisation project that has integrated ESG concepts into its development since the design stage. During the visit, participants also further learned from successful cases about the benefits of integrating ESG concepts into the operating strategies of enterprises.

Ends/Thursday, September 26, 2024
Issued at HKT 17:30

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