A symposium on safeguarding national security for the social welfare sector of Hong Kong was held today to explore the sector’s alignment with the National 15th Five-Year Plan and present the sector’s self-initiated efforts in safeguarding national security, with a view to supporting the high-quality development of the “one country, two systems” policy.

The event was jointly organised by the Labour & Welfare Bureau, the Social Welfare Department (SWD) and Connecting Hearts.

Officiated by Secretary for Labour & Welfare Chris Sun, and attended by Social Work Department Deputy Director-General of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Zhou He, the event attracted over 300 management personnel from social welfare organisations, as well as around 9,000 online participants from the social welfare sector.

Addressing the symposium, Mr Sun expressed hope that the sector will continue to work with the Government to advance efforts to safeguard national security, so that Hong Kong society can focus on striving for a vibrant economy, pursuing development, and improving people’s livelihood.

He noted while this year marks the beginning of the National 15th Five-Year Plan, it is incumbent upon all sectors of the community to consider and act on how Hong Kong can make full use of its strengths to serve the country’s needs and further integrate into overall national development. He also encouraged the social welfare sector to seize the opportunities from the 15th Five-Year Plan, enhance collaboration on social welfare in the Greater Bay Area, in order to contribute Hong Kong’s strengths to the country’s development.

Another highlight of the symposium was a sharing session featuring representatives from six social welfare organisations, who presented their self-initiated efforts and practical experiences in safeguarding national security. The session fostered peer exchanges and learning across the sector, encouraging organisations to integrate national security measures into their daily operations.

In his concluding remarks, Mr Sun said that the social welfare sector has been actively supporting the work of the Labour & Welfare Bureau and the SWD to promote national security. In addition to participating in national security-related events, the social welfare sector has also taken the initiative to organise training programmes, subsidised by the SWD's dedicated fund, on the understanding of national affairs and safeguarding national security, as well as arranging exchange tours to the Mainland for their staff.

Mr Sun said he was confident that the sector will demonstrate a broader perspective and a deeper sense of patriotism in serving the community, thereby facilitating the development and integration of Mainland and Hong Kong social welfare services.