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SCIT: Science and technology drive economic growth

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Following is a speech by the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, Mr Henry Tang, at the 10th Annual Conference of Hong Kong Institution of Science this (November 2) morning (English only):

Professor Chu, Professor Ng, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

It is my pleasure to speak at the 10th Annual Conference 2002 of the Hong Kong Institution of Science.

The famous British philosopher Francis Bacon said some four hundred years ago: "Knowledge is power." The environment we are living in manifests this statement well. We have been witnessing how knowledge is impacting different aspects of our life. For instance, information technology has not only broken down geographical boundaries, it also helps diffuse knowledge to potential users worldwide at their fingertips. Software applications have helped businesses to improve efficiency. The Internet and advances in telecommunications have changed our life style, the global business and workplace landscape, creating new demand and hence more business opportunities. In this knowledge-based economy, whoever has the creativity to bring about knowledge, to transform innovative ideas to workable solution, products or services, will be able to create wealth.

According to the Global Competitiveness Report of the World Economic Forum, at a low level of development, economic growth is driven primarily by mobilisation of primary factors of production. Wealth is in the hands of those with natural resources. At an investment-driven stage, foreign direct investment, joint venture and outsourcing activities bring new technologies to enhance efficiency of production and facilitate the building of supporting infrastructure for economic growth.

For the knowledge era, we should note that at the stage of innovation-driven economic development, global competitiveness is linked to high rate of social learning, in particular science learning, and the ability to rapidly shift to new technologies. Enterprises do not compete on prices but on how new value could be added. Those who are able to grasp the new technology and make the best of it will assume a leading position.

From science and technology to business opportunities, we need the abilities to develop, transfer, adapt and apply technology to generate commercially viable products, services and processes. Equally important in the process is a culture of technopreneurship. We are all familiar with the success story of Bill Gates, the chief software architect of Microsoft Corporation. As Lester Thurow points out in his book "Creating Wealth", Bill Gates does not sit on land, oil and factories, but he capitalises on knowledge and has been able to transform knowledge to technologies, turn great ideas into innovative software and services, and create a successful business model for generating wealth.

In order to stay ahead in this new competitive global environment, Hong Kong must have the ability to create knowledge and to ride on new technologies. We note that about 80% of our research and development activities are originated in our universities. This demonstrates that our universities have been playing a pivotal role in building the science base in Hong Kong and creating knowledge. The Government is committed to creating a conducive environment to leverage on the science base in our universities. The $5-billion Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF) established in November 1999 has been drawing university and industry together to pursue projects which could contribute to innovation and technology upgrading in local industry.

We have been seeing some projects bearing fruits in recent years. To name just a couple of examples of the achievements of these research projects, we have seen the successful spinning off of a company which provides a common multimedia software platform and a high-speed multimedia network for local media industry to process, retrieve and deliver electronic information, the implementation of a strong cryptographic infrastructure for electronic commerce in Hong Kong and more recently, the use of maternal plasma DNA for the diagnosis of foetal deformities without the need for invasive and conventional methods.

The partnership between the Government, universities and industry, or let me call it the "Golden Triangle", is crucial, instrumental and mutually beneficial. In many technological advanced economies, industry plays an essential role in promoting research and development activities. We see that the private sector has a key role to play in helping Hong Kong to move up the technological ladder and complementing Government's initiatives and measures. Though our economy is undergoing a difficult period of adjustment, we believe that with the concerted efforts of the "Golden Triangle", we are able to weather the storm.

I am pleased to note that the industry has recognised the need to upgrade and has cast their support with action. Using the ITF as a measure, in 1997, corporate contribution to public sector R&D sponsored by the Fund was only $1 to $25 from the Fund. This ratio has now increased to $1 to $5.5 recently. We would like to see more and more corporate participation and investment in R&D and high-value added activities.

We celebrated a few months ago the establishment of the Cyberport Institute of Hong Kong by the University of Hong Kong. The Institute aims to provide market driven programmes to groom IT talents. Apart from the University, there are five leading IT companies, which will become the Founding Industrial Partners. Through the partnership, students will gain benefits of learning cutting-edge IT knowledge and skills as well as gaining professional and academic recognition. On the other hand, our IT companies will enjoy the high availability of quality talents. The collaboration make the Cyberport stand out as a breeding ground for IT talents and I wish that more and more university-industry collaborations would take place in developing the manpower for the industry.

Talents are essential components for building up our science and technology capability. Apart from the Cyberport, the other infrastructural support organisations such as the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation and the Applied Research and Technology Institutes are also committed to building up our pool of talents. The Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation nurtures technology-based start-up companies through its incubation programme. It is set to engage in more collaboration with local universities to induce more campus based entrepreneurial activities. The Applied Science and Technology Research Institute has recruited many outstanding overseas and local researchers to conduct high quality R&D projects. We expect to see the formation of clusters of talents will help spawn new industries and a new breed of innovation driven and technology based companies in Hong Kong, thereby contributing to Hong Kong's innovation and technology development.

We have today at this Conference the most influential group of scientists. You have contributed in different ways and in your respective fields of expertise to building up our research and development capability. We have Professor Paul Chu at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Professor Tsui Lap-chee at the University of Hong Kong and the Chief Executive Officer of the Science and Technology Parks Corporation, Mr C D Tam. We have also distinguished scholars and researchers who have achieved membership of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Our young scientists look up to you as their role models in their pursuit of excellence.

Today, young scientists and engineers will be awarded the Young Scientist Awards, a new scheme launched by the Hong Kong Institution of Science. The scheme awards young scientists and engineers who show great promise in their field of study. I commend the Institution's commitment to training up our local research team. The Hong Kong Institution of Science is well placed to foster the advancement of science in Hong Kong, promote the importance of science to the community, and to organise events for the dissemination of knowledge.

May I take this opportunity to pay tribute to you all for what you have done in all these years to drive our economy ahead by bringing our scientific and technological development to new frontiers. I congratulate the Institution on your achievements to date and wish you many more success in the future.

End/Saturday, November 2, 2002

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