The Hong Kong Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation (HKCPEC), in collaboration with the Junior Achievement Hong Kong (JA HK), accomplished the 8th edition of HKCPEC Youth Programme amidst the challenges under the Covid-19 pandemic.

The HKCPEC Youth Programme 2020, titled “Play it forward HK@APEC Game Design Competition”, entailed a four-month journey with participation of 105 senior secondary students from 22 schools in Hong Kong. The Programme included a series of seminars, hands-on learning workshops, mentoring sessions and activities with a view to enhancing students’ awareness and understanding of the key issues and trends in regional trade and cooperation. The Programme also aimed at heightening students’ awareness of Hong Kong’s role and contribution in the Asia-Pacific region and developing their creativity, critical and strategic thinking, collaboration and skills that were essential for the 21st century.

The signature event of Game Expo and Competition-cum-Award Ceremony was successfully held on 14 November 2020 at Tai Kwun, heritage site of a former police station-prison-magistracy compound located at the heart of Hong Kong. Each team set up their own booth to showcase the board game they have developed. Students from different schools enjoyed the opportunities to mingle and exchange ideas while under strict compliance with public health requirements due to the prevailing pandemic situation.

After the “Empowerment” (nurturing activities) and “Challenge” (expo and competition) stages, students proceeded to the final stage of “Community Outreach” and were encouraged to share their experiences with fellow schoolmates through various channels, from face-to-face classroom sharing sessions to online video conferences and campus TV episodes. The HKCPEC Youth Programme 2020 has so far reached out to more than 5 000 students.

For details, please visit the HKCPEC’s website at www.hkcpec.org/en/Youth-Programme/Youth-Programme-2020/