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Following is the speech by the Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang, at the Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) Cocktail Reception in Johannesburg, South Africa, today (December 6, South Africa time):
Madame Majokweni [BUSA CEO], Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Sanibonani.
I am delighted to join you all for this cocktail reception.
First of all, I would like to congratulate Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) on its valuable work since 2004.
I am also pleased to learn of Madame Majokweni's interest and experience in our part of the world. I hope that you enjoyed your posting to Hong Kong in the beginning of the new millennium as South Africa's Commercial Attachˆm responsible for Southern China.
While Hong Kong is a relatively small city with a population of just seven million people, it is also the premier international gateway to Mainland China and its population of 1.3 billion people.
To make the most of the opportunities in our part of the world, Hong Kong depends on its inclusive and dynamic business environment. Almost 7,000 companies from Mainland China and around the world, including South Africa, have operations in Hong Kong. More than half of these firms use Hong Kong as their base for regional operations in Asia.
Among other things, foreign firms incorporated in Hong Kong enjoy the full benefits of our free-trade pact with Mainland China. We call this the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement, or CEPA. I encourage you to see how CEPA can help your businesses better connect with the vast and complex markets in Mainland China.
Our business philosophy is that all companies ¡V large and small, local and foreign ¡V are created equal. They have equal access to the market, equal access to our free flows of capital, information and talent. All businesses are subject to the same levels of scrutiny, and they pay the same low levels of tax.
All this contributes to our highly competitive and diverse business community.
This level playing field and business friendly environment has earned Hong Kong the ranking as the world's freest economy for the past 17 years.
We certainly welcome more companies from South Africa to come to Hong Kong and take advantage of our unique attributes.
It is not the Government's job in Hong Kong to pick winners and losers in our commercial and financial sectors. We leave it to the markets to decide whether new ideas will ultimately sink or swim. However, we do provide the right environment with world class services and infrastructure to give each business the best chance of success.
Our inward investment agency, Invest Hong Kong, assists new and expanding businesses in dealing with red tape and helps them acclimatise to the Hong Kong way of life.
We also have the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC). One of its many roles is to match overseas businesses with the most suitable partners in Mainland China. The HKTDC also organises high-profile trade fairs in Hong Kong that bring together buyers and suppliers from around the world.
Hong Kong's greatest competitive advantage is that we are a city in China but outside the Mainland. Under the principle of "One Country, Two Systems", our city remains a full-fledged individual member of international organisations, such as the World Trade Organisation, APEC, and the World Customs Organisation.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Hong Kong has pledged a long-standing allegiance to four pillars of success. They are: the rule of law, clean and efficient government, a level playing field for business and an independent judiciary.
We believe that this is the best way to enable people from around the world and from all walks of life to participate in, contribute to, and benefit from our economic growth.
I look forward to learning during my visit much more about the potential for stronger business links between Hong Kong and South Africa.
Thank you for this chance to meet with you this evening, and I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a prosperous 2012.
Thank you very much.
Ends/Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Issued at HKT 02:02
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