Secretary for Home & Youth Affairs Alice Mak met Shanghai Committee of the Communist Youth League of China Deputy Secretary and Shanghai Youth Federation President Wu Bin today to discuss enhancing youth exchanges in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

Welcoming the delegation led by Mr Wu, Miss Mak said Hong Kong and Shanghai have maintained close ties and extensive co-operation in various aspects such as cultural and creative industries, innovation and technology, and finance.

She added that Shanghai has also been staunchly supporting Hong Kong's youth development and has proactively provided exchange and internship opportunities for the city's young people.

The Home & Youth Affairs Bureau has adopted a multipronged approach to enhance young people's knowledge of the country and encourage them to integrate into its overall development through various exchange and internship programmes.

This year, the Funding Scheme for Youth Internship in the Mainland sponsored 21 youth internship programmes in Shanghai, while the Funding Scheme for Youth Exchange in the Mainland sponsored 29 youth exchange tours to Shanghai.

A total of about 2,000 young people are expected to benefit from the schemes.

Miss Mak said she looks forward to exploring measures to promote youth exchanges with Shanghai so as to provide more opportunities for Hong Kong young people to gain a better understanding of the local culture as well as deepen their understanding of the national development and opportunities.