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The fourth meeting of the Mainland/Hong Kong Science and Technology Co-operation Committee was held in Beijing today (September 25).
The meeting was co-chaired by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mrs Rita Lau, and the Vice-Minister of Science and Technology of the Central People's Government, Mr Cao Jianlin. The two sides discussed the progress of work since the third meeting and mapped out future innovation and technology co-operation projects between the Mainland and Hong Kong.
The two sides will continue to explore measures to further promote the sharing of technology talent, information and resources in order to encourage more Hong Kong institutes and talent to participate in national science and technology programmes, and to enhance the co-operation and exchange of experts by encouraging Mainland organisations to set up R&D facilities in Hong Kong.
Regarding the setting up of Partner State Key Laboratories in Hong Kong, the two sides will follow up on the establishment of seven such laboratories in Hong Kong, and assist the concerned universities in identifying Mainland partners with similar fields of research interest for the signing of co-operation agreements.
To implement the proposal of the "Outline of the Plan for the Reform and Development of the Pearl River Delta", the two sides will continue to expand the scale and scope of the joint funding part of the Guangdong-Hong Kong Technology Co-operation Funding Scheme (TCFS) to encourage more participation from research institutes and enterprises of the two places.
They will arrange for organisations from both sides that have a good basis for co-operation to jointly develop technology innovation platforms, to implement the "Co-operation Agreement on the Joint Establishment of Technological Innovation Platforms" entered into by Guangdong and Hong Kong in August 2008. Guangdong and Hong Kong will also explore how to provide funding support under TCFS for these platforms.
Besides the "Shenzhen-Hong Kong Innovation Circle", Shenzhen and Hong Kong will continue to work closely to take forward the projects included under the Three Year Action Plan of the "Shenzhen-Hong Kong Innovation Circle". They will also attract more overseas enterprises to conduct research and production in the two places through the "DuPont" model.
The meeting also agreed to set up the "Working Group on Pilot Implementation for Guangdong-Hong Kong Technology Co-operation" to study and formulate measures for pilot implementation in Guangdong, including measures to be implemented through the "Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement" as well as other suitable arrangements.
In the meeting, the two sides endorsed the expansion of the list of Hong Kong members of the Mainland/Hong Kong Science and Technology Co-operation Committee.
Concluding the meeting, Mrs Lau said, "I am pleased that the meeting has endorsed the inclusion of representatives of Hong Kong universities and technology institutes in the committee as new members. It will further improve the co-ordination mechanism for technology collaboration of the two sides.
"Apart from participating in national technology development through the State Key Laboratories Programme, Hong Kong universities and technology institutes will play a more significant role in promoting technology collaboration of the two places," she said.
Mrs Lau said she hoped that the Mainland and Hong Kong could build on the existing sound foundation to enhance the exchange of technology and industry and strengthen the technology co-operation between the two places.
Mainland members attending the meeting came from the Ministry of Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Science, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of State Council, the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in HKSAR, the Guangdong Provincial Department of Science and Technology and the Shenzhen Municipal Government Science, Technology, Industry, Trade and Information Committee.
The Hong Kong side comprised representatives from the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau, the Innovation and Technology Commission, the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, the Department of Health, the Office of the Government of the HKSAR in Beijing, the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute, the Hong Kong Productivity Council, the Hong Kong Research and Development Centre for Logistics and Supply Chain Management Enabling Technologies, the Nano and Advanced Materials Institute Limited, the Hong Kong Automotive Parts and Accessory Systems R&D Centre and the Hong Kong Jockey Club Institute of Chinese Medicine.
Ends/Friday, September 25, 2009
Issued at HKT 13:01
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