Chief Executive Carrie Lam

It is immensely reassuring to know that everyone taking in this three-day, international gathering believes in the future of our cities as dazzling places to live and work in, to raise a family in, to be educated, entertained and inspired by. All of us, in one way or another, are working to make our cities more attractive and livable, flush with affordable and innovative healthcare and education, shaped by inclusive and environmentally friendly programmes and priorities.

This year's conference takes its theme from the COVID-19 pandemic that has, for nearly two years now, shaken the world, shattering so much of what we had long taken for granted in our cities, our economies and our day-to-day lives. The COVID-19 pandemic has in particular, presented exceptional challenges to public health authorities around the world. Hong Kong is no exception.

That said, our response has been by and large effective. To date, Hong Kong has had less than 13,000 cases, which means about 1,650 cases per million people, one of the lowest among the world's economies. What's more, Hong Kong has yet to experience a city lockdown, as has been the case in many major cities. This is a significant achievement for a city as compact and densely populated as Hong Kong and with cross-boundary and international travel maintained. For a few months now, we have basically achieved zero infection in our city. People's lives here have largely returned to normal, and our economy this year is showing encouraging signs of recovery.

That we have reached this point in the pandemic is nothing less than a collective achievement. That is thanks to the concerted efforts of government planning and our healthcare system – the administrators, doctors, nurses and support staff who have worked so hard to bring the virus under control. That's also thanks to the people of Hong Kong, who have complied with the anti-epidemic rules despite the inconvenience. We are also grateful to the central government for their unwavering support on various fronts.

We have learnt a great deal in our fight against COVID-19. For example, we will look to further promote medical-social collaboration in our primary healthcare services, further invest in research and development and more readily apply innovation and technology in healthcare and many other areas in the future. I am sure when we eventually overcome COVID-19, the experience we have gained will help us become a smarter healthy city, as the theme of this year's global conference suggests.

Chief Executive Carrie Lam gave these remarks at the ninth Global Conference of the Alliance for Healthy Cities opening ceremony on November 3.