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Following is the speech by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Gregory So, at the HKDA Global Design Awards 2013 Awards Presentation Ceremony today (March 21):
Mr Lee (Chairman of the Hong Kong Designers Association, Mr Francis Lee), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
It is my pleasure to join you all this evening at the HKDA Global Design Awards 2013 Awards Presentation Ceremony. I am delighted to extend a warm welcome to those who come from afar and wish you a happy stay in Hong Kong.
Design is an indispensable part of our lives. Nowadays, it is well recognised as an essential enabling process that drives innovation, creativity and efficiency. A leading US designer, Ken Peters, has summed it up: "Designers deal in ideas. They give shape to ideas that shape our world, enrich everyday experiences, and improve our lives. Where there's confusion, designers fashion clarity; where there's chaos, designers construct order; where there's entropy, designers promote vitality; where there's indifference, designers swell passion; where there's mediocrity, designers imbue excellence; and where there's silence, designers lend voice." It is indeed important for us to cherish, celebrate and embrace good design.
Hong Kong has always been at the forefront of promoting design and demonstrates vision and leadership in this area. The Hong Kong Designers Association Awards were first launched in 1975. Since then, the Awards programme has firmly established itself as one of the most significant multi-disciplinary design awards in the region. The Awards programme has since 2001 further expanded its scope to accepting entries from around the world. In 2013, the Awards programme received an overwhelming response with over 2 000 quality entries under the graphic, product, spatial and new media categories from 40 countries or regions.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government is committed to promoting Hong Kong as a design hub and a creative city. The transformation of Hong Kong into a knowledge-based economy brings about promising prospects for the design sector in terms of growing emphasis on product upgrading and brand building. Outside the local market, the export of design services to the Mainland has been buoyed by the rapid growth in demand for product design, branding and marketing and commercial interiors from enterprises, as well as a rising proportion of indigenous Mainland manufacturing companies which strive to develop original design manufacturing (ODM) and original brand manufacturing (OBM) activities.
For nearly four decades, the Hong Kong Designers Association has shown great dedication and spared no efforts in promoting the wider use of design and uplifting the design profession in Hong Kong. We look forward to continuing to partner with the Hong Kong Designers Association to help the design sector scale new heights in the years to come.
Last but not least, I would like to congratulate the Association for making the Awards a success. I would also like to express my heartfelt thanks to the judges and congratulations to the award winners. Thank you.
Ends/Friday, March 21, 2014
Issued at HKT 20:39
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