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Invest Hong Kong today (September 21) staged a seminar titled "Expansion through Business Presence in Hong Kong - Seminar on Innovation & Technology" to promote Hong Kong's business advantages and share case studies of successful innovation and technology investors. Organised jointly with the Shanghai Federation of Industry and Commerce during The World Expo 2010 Shanghai China (Shanghai Expo), Mainland enterprises eyeing the international market for green energy business were encouraged during the seminar to leverage on Hong Kong as their platform to "Go Global".
Shanghai Expo's main theme "Better City, Better Life" advocates innovation and technology as an engine to drive competitiveness and better quality of life. The seminar, under the overall theme of "Go Green: Towards an Eco-friendly Society", promoted Hong Kong's bustling green economy. Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Shanghai, Mr Patrick Chan, and Vice Chairman of the Shanghai Federation of Industry and Commerce, Mr Jin Liang, delivered welcome remarks.
Commenting on Hong Kong's advantages in the innovation and technology sector, Associate Director-General of Investment Promotion at Invest Hong Kong, Miss Victoria Tang said, "Hong Kong is an international city as well as the world's freest economy. We have simple and low tax, comprehensive infrastructure and communication networks, the rule of law, international accounting practices, efficient trading support services and capital raising market. All these render Hong Kong an efficient global business platform for Mainland enterprises to open up more business opportunities and implement the 'Go Global' strategy."
According to statistics released in March 2010 from the Ministry of Commerce of P.R. China, 934 Mainland enterprises obtained approval to invest in Hong Kong last year, investing almost USD 8.55 billion.
Hong Kong is named Asia's leader in innovation and ranked third worldwide, according to the Global Innovation Index Report 2009-2010 by INSEAD. In addition, the HKSAR Government has identified and supports the development of six innovation and knowledge-oriented industries, namely innovation and technology, environmental industries, education services, medical services, testing and certification, and cultural and creative industries.
Support for the development of innovation and technology is also provided through a raft of initiatives, from a HK$5 billion Innovation and Technology Fund and numerous other subsidies for innovation and technology projects to state-of-the-art infrastructure like Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks, Cyberport, the Applied Science and Technology Research Institute and five R&D Centres.
In today's seminar, Senior Manager (Technopreneurial Funding), Innovation and Technology Commission of HKSAR, Mr Alan Ho; Senior Manager of Marketing and Admission of Hong Kong and Technology Parks Corporation, Mr Ricky Ma; and Chief Technology Officer of Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute Company Ltd, Professor Peter Yum, delivered speeches titled "Innovation and Technology Fund", "Green & Energy in Hong Kong Science Park" and "An Honest Opinion on 'Green Living'", respectively.
CEO and Managing Director of Union Semiconductor Inc, Mr Gary Yang; Vice President of Universal Technologies Holdings Ltd, Ms Celina Luan; and General Manager of United Gene Group, Mr Yong Cheng, were also guest speakers at the seminar, sharing their experiences of using Hong Kong as a platform to "Go Global".
The seminar is the second event that Invest Hong Kong has organised for the Shanghai Expo, after co-organising the successful Finance Forum in July.
About Invest Hong Kong
Invest Hong Kong is the department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government established in July 2000 to take responsibility for Foreign Direct Investment and support overseas, Mainland and Taiwanese businesses to set up or expand in Hong Kong. It provides free advice and customised services to help businesses succeed in Hong Kong's vibrant economy. As it celebrates its 10th anniversary, Invest Hong Kong has completed over 2,000 investment projects creating over 25,000 new jobs in the first year of operation or expansion and HK$52 billion of investment. For more information, please visit www.investhk.gov.hk.
Ends/Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Issued at HKT 15:41
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