Anita Chan is the new director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York.

Anita Chan took the helm as director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York on July 21. She succeeds Monica Chen, who has ended her tenure and is returning to Hong Kong to take on a new assignment.

Ms. Chan joined the Hong Kong government as a simultaneous interpreter after obtaining her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Hong Kong. She was the Chief Interpreter for the Sino-British negotiations on the transition of Hong Kong from 1994 to 1997.

Since then Ms. Chan worked in administrative and policy-related positions at various government bureaus and departments. She was the Research Director of the Central Policy Unit (CPU) from 1997 to 2000. The CPU’s major function is to provide advice on policy matters to the Chief Executive, the Chief Secretary for Administration and the Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government.

From 2000 to 2003, Ms. Chan served as the government’s Principal Assistant Secretary (Commerce and Trade), handling policy issues related to  business support  for small and medium enterprises, Hong Kong’s economic cooperation with mainland China and Hong Kong’s trade relationship with Asia. 

Ms. Chan was the Representative of the Economic and Trade Office in Tokyo from 2003 to 2007. From 2007 to July 2010, she was the Principal Assistant Secretary for Special Duties (Health) at the Food and Health Bureau. Her policy portfolio included tobacco control, the partnership between mainland China and Hong Kong on medical and health services and establishing medical centers of excellence in Hong Kong. 

Ms. Chan said she looks forward to working closely with all partners in both the public and private sectors to further Hong Kong’s economic and trade ties on the
East Coast of the United States. “Our office will also strive to serve our partners better as a source of information and assistance for all things to do with Hong Kong,” she said.

The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York is the office of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government that promotes and strengthens the economic and trade links between Hong Kong and the 31 U.S. states east of the Mississippi River.