Dec 22, 2022
The Government promulgated the Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Development Blueprint on December 22, 2022 to establish a clear development path and formulate systematic strategic planning for Hong Kong's innovation and technology (I&T) development over the next five to 10 years, charting Hong Kong in moving full steam towards the vision of an international I&T centre.
The Chief Executive proposed in this year's Policy Address to dovetail with the National 14th Five-Year Plan and develop Hong Kong into an international I&T centre at full speed. The Government has formulated the Blueprint from the perspective of top-level planning and design, and will take forward the Blueprint under four broad development directions, namely "to enhance the I&T ecosystem and promote 'new industrialisation' in Hong Kong"; "to enlarge the I&T talent pool to create strong impetus for growth"; "to promote digital economy development and develop Hong Kong into a smart city"; and "to proactively integrate into the overall development of the country and consolidate our role as a bridge connecting the Mainland and the world".
The Blueprint sets out eight major strategies under the four broad development directions, which are:
(1) To enhance the I&T ecosystem and promote interactive development of the upstream, midstream and downstream sectors To strengthen support to universities' basic research activities and facilities To step up efforts to incentivise the transformation and realisation of research and development (R&D) outcomes To implement specific facilitation policies on technology industries and support technology industries with an edge to develop in Hong Kong
(2) To promote technology industry development and achieve "new industrialisation" in Hong Kong To increase I&T land supply and upgrade supporting infrastructure To bring in top-notch enterprises To strengthen support for strategic industries To achieve internationalisation To promote R&D in technology
(3) To diversify venture financing channels and support the development of start-ups and industries To enhance the operation of the Innovation and Technology Venture Fund To optimise the existing listing regime To strengthen support to the development of start-ups in Hong Kong To make good use of the Co-Investment Fund To actively support the development of strategic technology industries through the Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited To attract more foreign capital to invest in local I&T industries To strengthen investment linkage and co-operation between Hong Kong and Shenzhen
(4) To promote I&T culture for all and enhance the overall I&T atmosphere in the community To provide support through various subsidy schemes to organising activities which help foster the I&T atmosphere To promote popularisation of I&T at different levels of the society by organising and strengthening the publicity and promotion of activities To enhance co-operation with various sectors and district organisations in the community To promote community-wide engagement in major I&T events To promote science education for all by making use of science-related exhibition venues
(5) To enrich I&T talent resources and develop an international talent hub To encourage universities to offer more I&T-related programmes To further promote I&T-related education in schools To proactively attract top-notch Mainland and overseas I&T talent To step up efforts to attract Hong Kong people studying overseas to return to Hong Kong To step up efforts to recruit Mainland and overseas young research talent To strengthen support to young scientific research scholars To enhance accommodation support to I&T talent To foster a sense of belonging among I&T talent
(6) To accelerate the development of digital economy and smart city to enhance citizens' quality of life To expedite the building of a smart government to enhance the efficiency of government services To facilitate spatial data applications To accelerate the development of new digital infrastructure To expand the application of I&T to promote smart living To accelerate the development of financial technology To build a secure cyber environment
(7) To deepen I&T co-operation with the Mainland for better integration into the overall national development To explore with relevant Mainland authorities on more facilitation measures to promote the convenient cross-boundary flow of innovation elements To forge ahead with the development of the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park in the Lok Ma Chau Loop To enhance the I&T ecological chain by making optimal use of the two major platforms of co-operation with Nansha of Guangzhou and Qianhai of Shenzhen To strengthen interaction with the national institutional set-up for innovation To enhance I&T co-operation with different provinces and municipalities
(8) To leverage Hong Kong's advantages as an international city to foster global I&T collaboration To strengthen the role as a bridge connecting the Mainland and the world To actively expand the global network To strengthen support for initiating I&T co-operation overseas
The Blueprint also sets out the macro I&T development targets for Hong Kong in the next five to 10 years which cover reference development indicators over four areas, namely R&D, startups, talent and industry development, to facilitate the review of the implementation of the Blueprint.
The Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong, said, "The Blueprint is a systematic and comprehensive document for Hong Kong's I&T development put forward by the Special Administrative Region (SAR) Government after many years. It is also a forward-looking and strategic plan.
"The SAR Government will adhere to the philosophy of being 'result-oriented' to develop Hong Kong into an international I&T centre. It will also hope to continuously listen to the opinions from different sectors of the society to enable the formulation of suitable policies and support measures, with a view to leading Hong Kong to realise its vision as an international I&T centre and living up to the support and great expectation of our country placed on the I&T development in Hong Kong."
The Government will also set up the new Committee on Innovation and Technology Industry Development to advise on strategic development issues under the Blueprint, with a view to enhancing the co-operation among stakeholders, and to reviewing the progress of the implementation of the Blueprint. The Committee will be chaired by the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry and will replace the existing Committee on Innovation, Technology and Re-industrialisation. The membership will be announced later.
The Blueprint has been uploaded to the website of the Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau (www.itib.gov.hk/en/index.html).