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Following is a speech by the Secretary for Information Technology and Broadcasting, Mrs Carrie Yau, at the Inauguration Ceremony of the Cyberport Institute

of Hong Kong today (June 25):

Professor Li, Professor Young, friends from the media, ladies and gentlemen,

It gives me great pleasure to attend the Inauguration Ceremony of the Cyberport Institute today. This is a very special moment for me as I personally initiated an exercise last year which has now culminated in the establishment of the Cyberport Institute, right at the Cyberport, by the University of Hong Kong in partnership with some leading IT companies. This is a key soft infrastructure which we have instituted for the benefit of our future generation. This is also a centrepiece which will make the Cyberport stand out as a breeding ground for IT talent.

As we all know, the Cyberport is Hong Kong's IT flagship project. This is a comprehensive development which will provide, in phases between 2002 and 2004, a mix of intelligent offices, a range of interesting entertainment and retail services and a 5-star deluxe international hotel, all set in a pleasantly landscaped, low-rise, campus-like environment. Supported by state-of-the-art telecommunications facilities and many useful IT services, the Cyberport will make available a world-class infrastructure for clustering of companies specialising in IT applications, information services, multimedia content creation and related sectors. These like-minded companies will bring with them professionals from all parts of the world. Apart from attracting and retaining professionals, the Cyberport will also be an ideal place to nurture talent.

I firmly believe that the Cyberport is well placed to address market requirements for IT skills ¡V not only to increase the number of IT people, but to produce more talent to meet the actual requirements of different IT companies. In March 2001, I openly invited proposals for designing and implementing some market driven programmes which would help groom talent to support the many IT developments and businesses in Hong Kong. This attracted, among others, a comprehensive proposal from the University of Hong Kong to set up a Cyberport Institute in partnership with some major IT companies. Today we are here to take part in the Inauguration Ceremony of this Cyberport Institute. This is a new institute set up by the University under the able leadership of Professor C F Lee and supported by a range of departments and units of the University, including HKU SPACE led by Professor Young.

I am encouraged by the staunch support given to the Cyberport Institute by Cisco, Hewlett Packard, IBM, Microsoft and Oracle. These five companies are the first Founding Industrial Partners which will contribute to the curriculum development, coursework and job placement of students of the Cyberport Institute. Students will gain benefits of upgrading on cutting-edge IT knowledge and skills as well as gaining professional and academic recognitions. On the other hand our IT companies will enjoy the higher availability of wanted talent. The Inauguration Ceremony of the Cyberport Institute today inaugurates a new university-industry collaboration in developing and delivering postgraduate IT courses to match the manpower needs of the industry.

The Cyberport Institute will be set up at the second Cyberport building, next to this first phase building, around the middle of next year. This will play a useful role in grooming IT talent for Hong Kong. Just as I start falling in love with the Cyberport, I am afraid I have to say good-bye but only in my official capacity as Secretary for Information Technology & Broadcasting. As a Hong Kong citizen, my heart will always be with this project, since as I have said in my opening remarks, this is something which the HKSAR Government has built for the future of Hong Kong. I trust with the creativity, vision and commitment of all those involved in grooming IT talents, the Cyberport Institute will reap every success.

Thank you.

End/Tuesday, June 25, 2002

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