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Following is the full text of the speech (English only) by the Financial Secretary, Mr Donald Tsang, at the ITU Ministers Dinner tonight (December 4):
Secretary-General Utsumi, Ministers, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
It is an honour and a pleasure to join you for tonight's dinner. I must first add my own personal words of welcome to all of our guests and visitors, and wish you all a very fruitful and enjoyable stay in Hong Kong over the next four or five days.
ITU TELECOM Asia 2000 has been billed as the 'most important telecommunications event in the history of the Asia Pacific region'. I wonder if that makes tonight's gathering the most important dinner in the history of Asia-Pacific telecommunications? Looking around the room, I can see that we have brought together the most influential and esteemed leaders in the telecommunications sector in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond. So perhaps we might make the history books after all.
Since I have mentioned history, it is interesting to note that only 10 years ago the world wide web made their global debut from a physics laboratory in Geneva. Today is actually the 5th anniversary of the launch of JavaScript, which transformed static websites into dynamic applications. And it was only five years ago that Amazon.com sold its first book over the Internet. So much has happened in the past five to 10 years.
Nowadays, the buzzwords are convergence and 3G. What lies ahead in these areas must, of course, involve co-operation through the ITU, e.g. in areas such as spectrum planning and allocation and setting compatible standards. Over the next five years, mobile phone use in the Asia-Pacific region is expected to rise from 150 million to 400 million. By 2010 it will reach 850 million. Within the next decade, more than two billion people world-wide will be using mobile multi-media services via 3G systems. The transformation from a wired, to a wireless, world will no doubt present enormous business opportunities in the years ahead. It will also require even greater co-operation between governments and the private sector. But it will also help the ITU to realise its vision that people should be able to communicate anywhere at anytime, breaking geographical, and eventually, social boundaries.
It is a vision that we in Hong Kong share. As a small, open economy Hong Kong has thrived on interaction with the rest of the world. We are a free economy, the embodiment of free trade and an open market. We are a free society, underpinned by the rule of law upheld by an independent judiciary.
We also understand that the fast, free and unfettered flow of news, views and information is a 'must have' for success now and in the future. Our business men and women, our entrepreneurs and academics must have unhampered and instant access to information if they are to compete in the global village. Our community is connected to the four corners of the world through perhaps the most modern communications infrastructure. The early deregulation of our telecommunications sector has provided more choice, better services and decreased the costs of keeping in touch here and abroad.
These fundamental strengths and advantages have never been more important for Hong Kong than they are now. Ongoing globalisation of trade in goods and services, driven by advances in information technology, will present enormous benefits as well as challenges. E-commerce and m-commerce will become as much a part of daily life as a visit to the local grocery shop.
One of the greatest challenges for governments everywhere will be to ensure that all sectors of the community benefit from the leaps and bounds forward in information technology. In Hong Kong, we have set ourselves a goal to become a regional hub for innovation, technology and communications. To achieve this, we are committed to providing the educational and infrastructural framework needed to bridge the digital divide and to make the Internet - or whatever it develops into - as accessible for grandparents and unskilled labourers as it is for students and business professionals. Only then can we claim to be a cyber city in the cyber century.
Ministers, distinguished guests : the telecommunications industry has had a most profound effect on human development since Samuel Morse sent his first public message over a telegraph line in 1844. Dots and dashes have been superseded by bits and bytes. Telecommunications have become more than just public utilities - they are now major, international businesses and an integral part of global trade and commerce that delivers services in many other areas such as banking, tourism, transportation, consultancy and information services.
This blurring of sectors presents a host of new challenges for the ITU. No doubt some of them will be discussed during the next few days. Whatever the issues or discussions, I am certain that the ITU will work with its partners around the world, as it always has, to ensure that as many people as possible benefit from advances in communications technology and services.
On behalf of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, may I once again welcome you all to Hong Kong. It is my earnest hope that you enjoy your brief stay with us and that ITU Asia TELECOM 2000 is indeed remembered as a most important and fruitful communications event for the Asia-Pacific Region.
Thank you.
Photo: The Financial Secretary, Mr Donald Tsang, hosted a dinner for the ministers of the participating countries at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Telecom Asia 2000 at Grand Hyatt Hotel this (December 4) evening. Picture shows Mr Tsang addressing the guests.
End/Monday, December 4, 2000
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