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LCQ1: Promoting Hong Kong's advantages as a convention and exhibition capital
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    Following is a question by the Hon Andrew Leung and a reply by the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, Mr Joseph WP Wong, at the Legislative Council meeting today (January 10):

Question

     The International Telecommunication Union TELECOM WORLD 2006, recently concluded in Hong Kong, was the first TELECOM WORLD ever held in a city other than Geneva. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a) of the tangible and intangible economic benefits that this event has brought to such industries as telecommunications, convention and exhibition, hotel, tourism, catering and retail etc.; and

(b) as many cities in the region are vigorously developing markets for their convention and exhibition industries, whether the Government will introduce measures after this event to enhance Hong Kong's status as a major international convention and exhibition centre in the region?

Reply:

Madam President,

     The ITU TELECOM WORLD, the famed "Olympics of the telecommunications industry;, was held in Hong Kong from 4 to 8 December 2006. This was the first ITU TELECOM WORLD ever held outside Geneva, as well as the largest exhibition cum forum ever held in Hong Kong. The event drew worldwide attention.  

     According to the statistics provided by the organiser, namely the International Telecommunication Union, 695 exhibitors from 37 countries participated in the ITU TELECOM WORLD. The exhibition cum forum took up a total area of 70 000 square metres, or the entire floor space of the AsiaWorld-Expo (AWE). Some 62 000 participants from 141 countries attended the exhibition or the forum.

     Regarding the first part of the question, the successful hosting of the ITU TELECOM WORLD has significantly enhanced Hong Kong・s status internationally and greatly benefited our information and communications technology (ICT) industry, exhibition industry and other economic sectors.  

     First, the Government played a key role in coordinating and promoting ITU TELECOM WORLD and rendered support in such areas as traffic management, security and crowd control. Relevant sectors also facilitated on matters relating to logistics, accommodation and exhibition facilities, etc. The seamless arrangements were unanimously appreciated by the participants, fully demonstrating Hong Kong・s capability to host mega international exhibitions and conventions. This has also reinforced Hong Kong・s position as the world・s events capital and underlined Hong Kong・s unique role as a telecommunications hub in the region.

     ITU TELECOM WORLD has demonstrated Hong Kong・s pivotal role in accessing the Mainland market for overseas companies. During the exhibition, the Government arranged a series of activities to help overseas enterprises deepen their understanding of the Mainland market. At the same time, the event attracted participation from about 150 Mainland exhibitors and provided an effective platform for Mainland enterprises of various sizes to keep themselves abreast of the state-of-the-art technologies and latest business intelligence. Such knowledge will be conducive for their future expansion or entry into the global market.

     The local ICT sector also made good use of the platform provided by the ITU TELECOM WORLD to network with enterprises from all over the world and to gain first-hand information about leading-edge technologies, business operation and promotion strategies. They took the opportunity to showcase their excellence to overseas enterprises, attract foreign investment and expand business opportunities. Some 80 local ICT companies, including many small and medium enterprises, participated in the exhibition.  

     Furthermore, the Government took the opportunity to hold bilateral meetings with ministers of overseas governments during the ITU TELECOM WORLD to share information about the latest developments in the telecommunications sector and strengthen mutual cooperation. The Government and the ICT sector also actively participated in the forum to exchange views on telecommunications policies and developments.

     Apart from the aforementioned intangible benefits, the ITU TELECOM WORLD has also brought significant direct economic benefits of about $900 million to Hong Kong. That included expenses incurred by exhibitors for constructing exhibition booths and conducting promotion programmes, as well as exhibitors・ and visitors・ spending on accommodation, catering, sight-seeing and shopping. Moreover, during the exhibition period, the venue operator and its contractors created over 1 000 temporary job opportunities in the exhibition centre. Hotel occupancy rate was over 90%.

     Regarding the second part of the question, the success of both the Sixth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation held in Hong Kong in 2005 and the ITU TELECOM WORLD reflects clearly the Government・s policy in furthering the development of Hong Kong as an international exhibition and convention centre. The Government has been closely monitoring demand for exhibition infrastructure and has taken appropriate measures in order to maintain Hong Kong・s position as an international exhibition and convention centre.    

     On infrastructure, the Government has invested $2 billion to develop the AWE. AWE is suitable for exhibitions for both light and heavy industries, e.g. ITU TELECOM WORLD 2006. Since its opening in end 2005, major exhibitors from Hong Kong, the Mainland, Europe and the United States have held over 40 events and activities at AWE, and over 90% of them were in Hong Kong for the first time. Our success in hosting the ITU TELECOM WORLD at AWE will further promote the development of AWE. We are actively liaising with AWE with a view to taking forward the early commencement of AWE Phase 2 project, thereby increasing its total exhibition space to 100 000 square metres.

     We also strongly support the expansion of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC). Back in 2005, the Government already rendered its support to the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (TDC)・s proposal of expanding the atrium link between HKCEC・s Phase 1 and Phase 2. It will add 19 400 square metres of exhibition space, boosting HKCEC・s total dedicated exhibition space by 42%. The expansion project is expected to be completed in 2009. We are actively pursuing with TDC the need for further expanding our exhibition facilities, including the development of HKCEC Phase 3 in Wanchai.

     The Government will continue to work closely with the industry to attract more international conventions and exhibitions to Hong Kong. Relevant departments including InvestHK, our economic and trade offices, TDC and the Hong Kong Tourism Board etc. will further promote Hong Kong・s advantages as a convention and exhibition capital. Where necessary, the Government will also continue to assume a coordinating role for the large-scale international conventions in areas such as security, traffic management and reception so as to facilitate their smooth running.

     Thank you, Madam President.

Ends/Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Issued at HKT 16:41

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