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Following is the speech by the Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang, at the Awards Presentation Ceremony of the Hong Kong Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Awards 2007 this (January 21) evening:
Larry, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good evening.
I am delighted to join you all for tonight's awards ceremony, and to pay tribute to our ICT industry and its professionals.
This is the second year of the ICT Awards, but the event has already emerged as one of the most important occasions for the industry in Hong Kong. I wish to congratulate the organising committee on their work in staging the Awards. I would also like to thank the participating organisations and panel of prestigious judges for all their dedication and commitment in making this evening a resounding success.
The evolution of ICT is one of the greatest achievements of our time. It has brought about unprecedented changes to our daily lives. The way we do business and communicate with each other will never be the same again. It has effectively shrunk our planet, enabling businesses to go global while staying at home. The ICT revolution has knocked down trade barriers and opened up channels for supply that were previously unimaginable. As a result, we become more productive.
With the advancement of ICT, the global economy is transforming into one big network - for the circulation of money, information, technologies, goods, services, expertise and personnel. The ability to plug into the network and stay ahead of the game is critical. As Ester Dyson, a luminary in the online/information technology industry once said, "It may not always be profitable at first for businesses to be online, but it is certainly going to be unprofitable not to be online."
The Hong Kong Government is fully committed to creating a favourable environment for the development of information and communications technology. To strengthen our overall competitiveness in this era of globalization, it is vital that we keep up with the latest ICT trends. Last month, we published the "2008 Digital 21 Strategy",a blueprint for ICT development. With a vision of maintaining Hong Kong's leading position in the global digital economy, one of the key action areas of the Strategy is to promote advanced technology and innovation.
The Hong Kong ICT Awards 2007, is co-organised by seven leading industry organisations this year. It aims to promote excellence and to give due recognition to achievements in a wide range of innovative ICT products, services and applications.
The Awards received 330 high quality entries this year. This overwhelming response demonstrates the innovation and creativity of our ICT sector. It also reflects our strength as a vibrant digital city that is constantly striving for excellence.
I am encouraged to see that the participating entries are diverse in nature, coming from both public and private sectors, from large enterprises and smaller ones, and from non-government organisations as well as from individuals. All the entries are high quality examples that are indicative of their outstanding achievements.
These Awards are part of what is shaping up to be an especially action-packed year for our city. In addition to the numerous international events that are held in Hong Kong annually, we will become an Olympic city. It is a real honour and a once-in-a-lifetime experience to stage the equestrian events of the Beijing Olympic Games here in August. The motto of the modern Olympics is "faster, higher, stronger". I believe our ICT industry and ICT professionals share similar aspirations: faster adoption, higher creativity and stronger competitiveness. These Awards may be more akin to the Oscars of the ICT industry than the Olympics, but the quest for excellence is the same.
Finally, Ladies and Gentlemen, I wish to congratulate the award winners on their outstanding achievements, and I wish to congratulate the ICT industry on its remarkable advancements. We are all eager to see what the ICT world has in store for us in the future.
Thank you very much.
Ends/Monday, January 21, 2008
Issued at HKT 20:26
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