Although Hong Kong has had ups and downs, on the whole, it is much better than it was 20 years ago.

Its regional GDP has grown by 80 percent since 1997. Even though Hong Kong's economy as a share of the nation's total has shrunk, it is very normal as our country has developed at a surprising speed.

In the past 20 years, Hong Kong's role in the development of the country has undergone subtle changes. When the mainland adopted the reform and opening-up policy in the late 1970s, Hong Kong was its main source of investment. Foreign enterprises that intended to invest in the mainland also needed to route through Hong Kong. Currently, foreign companies can directly invest in the mainland.

Hong Kong is more experienced in risk management and its legal system is more in line with that of foreign countries. These are the advantages of Hong Kong, with which we are planning to develop the city into a prime venue for commercial arbitration.

Hong Kong can play an important role in aligning Chinese and international standards in building the China-proposed Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road, collectively known as the Belt and Road Initiative, though the main goal is to introduce Chinese standards in overseas markets.

In addition, Hong Kong can serve as a funding hub for the Belt and Road Initiative. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has set up an infrastructure investment office.

Under the premise of controllable risks, Hong Kong can also function as a testing ground for the internationalization of the renminbi. We can help investors from the mainland to invest in overseas markets and in the meantime attract foreign capital to the financial market of the mainland.

Although the four pillar industries—trade and logistics, tourism, finance, and professional and other productive services—have made great contributions to Hong Kong's economy, future development will definitely be more diversified. We should provide more development opportunities for the innovation and technology sector.

In 1997, I made the movie Eighteen Springs based on the eponymous novel by Eileen Chang. In the same year, I made a documentary, As Time Goes By, reflecting the concerns and worries of social elites in Hong Kong on their identification after the return.

Quite a few Hong Kong directors have been very successful in cooperating with mainland movie makers over the past 20 years. Their communication and cooperation have brought many opportunities and nice surprises. It is very important to have clear and thorough understanding of each other.

In 2007, I made a low-budget movie, The Way We Are, with the investment of only HKS1.2 million ($153,722). To my surprise, this movie, which is in Cantonese and reflects local life in Tin Shui Wai in the New Territories, has won acclaim from the mainland audience.

Emotions have no boundaries—the more local it is, the more touching it can be. I am very optimistic about the future of Hong Kong movies.

Kwok Yiu-kei, middle school teacher

Our school holds a flag-raising ceremony once every month.

Many schools have formed their flag-raising teams after Hong Kong's return to the motherland as part of their efforts to enhance students' identification with our nation.

Now there are about 500 middle schools in Hong Kong. Except for some private and international schools, most are sponsored by the government and the classes are mainly taught in Cantonese and English.

The birth rate in Hong Kong in recent years has fallen gradually and the number of new students has decreased. The number of students taking diploma exams decreased from 62,000 in 2015 to 57,000 in 2016 and this year, it further decreased to 52,000, the lowest in history.

Some schools will have to be closed due to the lack of students. The new Chief Executive, Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, has promised to increase educational resources. I hope we don't have to worry about employment in the future.

Li Xiaojia, Chief Executive of HKEX Group

In the past 20 years, the capital market in Hong Kong has boomed and Hong Kong has developed from a regional financial center to an international financial hub.

The value of Hong Kong's stock market has increased by more than seven-fold, in addition to a two-fold growth in the number of companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and a four-fold growth in the average daily stock trading volume.

In 1993, Tsingtao Brewery became the first enterprise from the mainland to be listed in Hong Kong. The number of Hong Kong-listed mainland companies had increased from 101 at the end of 1997 to 1,002 at the end of 2015. They accounted for 51 percent of all publicly traded companies in Hong Kong and 63 percent of the local stock market value.

In the following years, Hong Kong will transform from a funding hub to a global wealth management center, a leading offshore risk management center and a global asset pricing center for the mainland. The implementation of the principle of "one country, two systems" holds the key to achieving this goal.

So Shung-lim, owner of Kung Wo Bean Curd Factory

Kung Wo Bean Curd was founded by Lok Bang in 1893. Before the return, Lok's family intended to transfer the business. I took it over without hesitation.

I made the decision because I was confident in Hong Kong. People need to eat anyway. As long as the food is good, business will not be bad.

Hong Kong's economy has developed rapidly over the past 20 years and Kung Wo's business has been getting better, especially after individual mainland tourists were allowed to visit Hong Kong in 2003.

I will stay with this business till I'm 65 at least. My daughter is interested in taking over after that. We follow and keep the spirit of older-generation Hong Kong people— working hard and pursuing perfection.

Man Siu-lun, engineer

I am from a village in the New Territories, adjacent to Shenzhen in Guangdong Province. Even though I have moved to Hong Kong Island, I come back to the village regularly, walking in the farmland and breathing fresh air. It is like a retreat from the busy and bustling urban life.

In the 1980s, there were only a few new houses in the village and the houses had just one or two floors. My family was the first to build a three-storey house. In the past decade, more three-storey houses have been built.

After Hong Kong's return to China, the government has been endeavoring to improve the living conditions for native residents in the New Territories. Currently, we have modern toilets and wider roads in the village.

In the past 20 years, many people who moved to other countries before 1997 have come back to Hong Kong. Many of my contemporaries have also returned after studying overseas.