HONG KONG -- Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Carrie Lam said on Friday that she hoped Hong Kong would forge ahead and start again in the new year.

Lam and senior officials of the HKSAR government said in local media on Friday that the HKSAR government will make good use of the measures taken by the central government to support Hong Kong and seize the opportunities generated by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to develop the local economy and improve people's livelihood.

Lam said the year 2020 posed a great challenge to the governments of all countries and regions, with the COVID-19 pandemic wreaking havoc on the economy. In the early stage of the epidemic, Hong Kong still had to confront political and social challenges in the wake of the social unrest in 2019, which was a difficult time.

Lam said that the implementation of the Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR has brought an opportunity for Hong Kong to move from chaos to order.

While the social stability was restoring, Hong Kong people have realized that it was imperative to ensure a stable and long-term practice of "one country, two systems" and to establish and improve the legal system and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security, Lam said, adding that in the new year, she will make every effort to help Hong Kong get out of the coronavirus epidemic.

Matthew Cheung, chief secretary for administration of the HKSAR government, said that the country's full support for Hong Kong in the face of adversity shows that the country will always be Hong Kong's strongest, most reliable and most solid backing.

In the new year, the HKSAR will seize the opportunity of the development of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, make good use of Hong Kong's unique advantages of "one country, two systems", actively participate in the domestic and international economic cycles, better integrate into the overall development of the country, and let Hong Kong start again and create another glory, Cheung said.

Paul Chan, financial secretary of the HKSAR government, hoped that Hong Kong and the world will beat COVID-19 soon so that people can return to normal life and the economy recover steadily.

Chan said that with the tenacity and flexibility of Hong Kong people, as long as they recognize the right direction and move forward hand in hand, they will be able to overcome the existing difficulties and challenges, enabling Hong Kong's better development after the epidemic.

Teresa Cheng, secretary for justice of the HKSAR government, hoped that Hong Kong people will work together to fight the epidemic for Hong Kong to get out of the epidemic at an early date.

The Department of Justice of the HKSAR government is committed to providing honest, independent and professional legal advice to the HKSAR government and to instilling into the society the correct sense of the rule of law and the relationship between the Constitution and the HKSAR basic law, Cheng said.