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CE's speech

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Following is the speech by the Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, at the Opening Ceremony of Hong Kong Science Park today (June 27):

Good afternoon, Victor, C D, ladies and gentlemen,

At the end of my first term as Chief Executive, it gives me immense pleasure and great satisfaction to be here this afternoon to witness the grand opening of the Hong Kong Science Park. I am glad that the Science Park has been fulfilling its mission in creating a cluster of quality and innovative technology-based companies in Hong Kong. Some 16 local and international high-tech companies are planning to move into the Science Park, and the latest addition being Philips, our very good friend who plans to establish, as Victor said earlier on, its research and development operations here in Hong Kong.

The last five years have been a period of great challenge for Hong Kong. Our excessively overheated economy before July 1997 proved to be unsustainable, and, indeed damaging. We suffered very badly from the bursting of the property bubble and the fallout of the Asian financial crisis. This together with globalisation, the advent of information technology, and rapid and successful development of the Chinese economy, have necessitated the restructuring of our own economy, a process which is protracted and painful.

Today, we are seeing a major, fundamental, and unprecedented change to the economic structure of Hong Kong. If we can cope with this change at this very critical time, we will bring Hong Kong to new heights of success.

The promotion of innovation and technology for adding value to our economy against the background of the globalization process, the brutally competitive international landscape, the impact of technological application has been one of the cornerstones of my policy platform. Indeed this exhortation was put forward even before I took office five years ago. The deep reflection of the community on the state of the economy in the past few years has in fact been a much more positive process than it appears at this moment. Amidst the bewilderment and mixed feelings, one gratifying outcome is that there is a clearer degree of recognition, particularly within the business community, that innovation and technology holds the key to the future of Hong Kong. This awakening and acceptance is important. And although there is that occasional expression of misgivings on the specifics, the need for Hong Kong to embark on its own programmes to promote innovation and technology in the unique Hong Kong context has now been undisputedly accepted.

Let me look back quickly to see where we are.

From the very beginning, our objective has been very clear. This is to use science and technology to enhance the innovative capability of Hong Kong, to create knowledge based, high value added activities and to strengthen the competitiveness of our business. The use of science and technology will also give individuals in Hong Kong, with the acquisition of new knowledge, new opportunities to enhance themselves in every respect possible.

Over the past five years, we have been investing and doing a great deal in this special regard. Greater resources to support R&D at all levels, notably:

* the creation of the $5 billion Innovation and Technology Fund;

* establishment of the Applied Science and Technology Research Institute;

* greater incentives for industry to collaborate with universities in technology transfer and development;

* technology incubation programme;

* financial assistance for technology entrepreneurs;

* development of the Science Park and the Cyberport;

* creation of the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation to manage in a coordinated manner the technological infrastructure of Hong Kong, and so on.

This is a major commitment on the part of the Government. Our resolve to advance these initiatives in a sustainable manner has never faltered.

These programmes are already beginning to show promises and our achievements are not trivial by any benchmark. Let me elaborate.

Over the past five years, through sustained effort, we have built up a respectable science base in Hong Kong. We have seen internationally competitive research work, both basic and applied, from one of the smallest nanotubes in the world to the breakthrough discovery and use of maternal plasma DNA for the diagnosis of foetal deformities without the need for invasive and therefore dangerous conventional methods. The list can go on and on.

We are seeing more and more corporate participation in applied R&D. Using the Innovation and Technology Fund as a measure, we note that in 1997 corporate contribution to public sector R&D sponsored by the Fund was only a very small $1 to $25 from the Fund. This is now becoming more encouraging: the ratio has increased to $1 to some $5.5. Still some way to go, but we are moving in the right direction.

The successful development of science and technology is about developing the best and brightest in Hong Kong and attracting world-class scientists and scholars from all over the world to live and work here in Hong Kong. We have been increasingly successful in these efforts. Only last month the prestigious membership of the Chinese Academy of Sciences was conferred upon six outstanding scientists from Hong Kong. One of them, in her late 30s, is the youngest member of the Academy.

We are also attracting some of the best around the world to join us in Hong Kong. Paul Chu at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Tsui Lap-chee at the University of Hong Kong, Simon Wong at the Applied Science and Technology Research Institute, and of course the Chief Executive Officer of the Science and Technology Parks Corporation, C D Tam. From these names you will see the credibility of Hong Kong, and our effort to move forward in innovation and technology is being taken seriously around the world. Talents attract talents. We are seeing, for instance, the Applied Science and Technology Research Institute, are able to attract young and talented research scientists and engineers from overseas. We are determined to maintain this momentum.

Our physical infrastructure to support innovation and technology is progressing well. Phase I of the Cyberport's occupancy rate is reaching 80% with big names including Microsoft, GE Information Services, Sonera and PCCW being the major tenants to sign on.

To provide more applied research to support innovation and technology, the Applied Science and Technology Research Institute has also begun its work, initially focusing in photonics, integrated circuit design, e-learning software development and wireless communication.

Another area which Hong Kong has potential to excel is biomedical research, particularly in respect of research of the cause, diagnosis and treatment of diseases common to Asian and Chinese people. With our strong medical schools and the establishment of the world class institutes like the Research Centre of Emerging Infectious Diseases, the HKU-Pasteur Research Centre on microbiology, the Genome Research Centre, and the Institute of Chinese Medicine, we are creating a cluster of advanced research facilities to help attract to Hong Kong the world's top scientists and researchers in the biomedical field.

Design is an integral part of our innovative capability. And good design is essential for successful branding. I am encouraged by the greater awareness in the importance of design and the trend that our industries are engaging in original design manufacturing (ODM) by providing their own engineering and design solutions to customers, instead of the traditional original equipment manufacturing (OEM) mode. There are quite a few local manufacturers already marketing their products with their own or acquired brand names and I am confident that more and more will follow suit in their competition in the global market. For one the garment and apparel sector is working hard to establish its own fashion center, in which fashion design will be a major element. And in September we will see the opening of the Hong Kong Design Centre whereby all design professionals in Hong Kong will put their acts together to promote design in Hong Kong and raise Hong Kong's international profile in that respect.

Our desire to enhance Hong Kong's design capability will also be seen in the plans of the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation and the Applied Science and Technology Research Institute to set up a joint integrated circuit design support centre by the end of this year.

I think this is the right juncture for me to bring in the Science Park and the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation. It is one of our flagship projects for the promotion of innovation and technology. I am very glad to be on the campus of the Science Park this afternoon to see for myself this magnificent project. Well done, Victor! Well done, CD! It has already signed up 16 tenants from Hong Kong and overseas, notably Silicon Valley, and more are in the pipeline. But mind you, the Science Park is not just about real estate.

What is more satisfying is that we are beginning to see the clustering of electronics and integrated circuit design companies in the Science Park. They are beginning to provide new impetus for Hong Kong's industrial development. This gives cause of optimism for the Science Park to realize its vision for the creation of industrial clusters in the four technology focuses, namely electronics, IT and telecommunications, precision engineering and biotechnology.

The promotion of entrepreneurship is another major aspect of our programme. Good technological developments are only worthwhile if they are commercialized and applied to industry. The Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation is set to increase the uptake of its incubation programme to 100 annually, some of which will be in the Science Park. The Corporation is also, in collaboration with local universities, to induce more campus based entrepreneurial activities. There is an increasing convergence of the various promotional programmes, including the Small Entrepreneur Research Assistance Programme, so as to achieve synergy and optimize the overall impact. We hope that this process will help spawn new industries and a new breed of innovation driven and technology based companies here in Hong Kong. Our efforts are beginning to bear fruit with the public listing of at least three companies in the past 12 months and the impending listing of at least one in the next three months.

With our hard work over the last 5 years, it is a modest beginning admittedly, but a good foundation is being laid.

I can assure you that in my second term as Chief Executive I will continue to support steadfastly innovation and technology as a main driving force for a better and more prosperous Hong Kong. Let there be no misunderstanding about my commitments. When the accountability system is in full swing, the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, Henry, will have overall responsibility for pushing this mission forward and for achieving the results we would like to see. The restructuring of the government organization by bringing all technology related portfolios together would facilitate the fulfillment of this mission. The various programmes and projects that we have started will bear fruit and contribute in a substantial way in our search for greater economic development, as the means to enhance our productivity, strengthen our competitiveness and identify new engines of growth. Technology manifesting itself as products, services, processes and infrastructure will also enhance our capability to innovate. These promises, together with other reform programmes in related areas, notably education, and the impact of the Mainland's continued rapid growth and development, particularly in the wake of its accession to the WTO, will be able to bring Hong Kong to new heights in the years ahead.

I take this opportunity to wish the Science Park every success in its future endeavours.

Thank you very much.

End/Thursday, June 27, 2002

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