Press release
IT Sector to ITB: ‘Get Things Done’
Charles Mok Urges the New Bureau to Consult Widely and Devise Priorities
Charles Mok Urges the New Bureau to Consult Widely and Devise Priorities
(9 Nov 2015, Hong Kong) LegCo Finance Committee passed funding proposals to establish the Innovation and Technology Bureau (ITB) on 6 November 2015. As the ITB is expected to be up-and-running soon, Charles Mok, Legislative Councillor for Information Technology sector, together with a group of industry veterans expressed their expectations and recommendations to ITB. “For a long time, the industry has been asking for a high level bureau to spur innovation and technology development. We do not expect having ITB alone would solve every problem, but it is important for the ITB to make effort in areas that past policies have fallen short, so that Hong Kong can keep up with global competitors in terms of innovation and technology.” said Charles Mok.
He added that the new Secretary for Innovation and Technology should bring new vision and maintain an international perspective in order to reflect Hong Kong’s unique advantages as an international hub. He hopes the Bureau will not repeat past mistakes, and clearly articulate how it will achieve its deliverables; the first thing it should do is to devise priorities and listen to views from various stakeholders, and be fair and transparent in its approach. Charles Mok has 3 major suggestions to the ITB:
1. Devise clear strategy, action plan and plan to release performance indicators/statistics;
2. Regularly track the development of companies in the innovation and technology industries to evaluate the effectiveness and impact of policies;
3. Reform current consultation bodies to facilitate interaction with the industry and encourage feedback from a wider group of stakeholders and public.
He stated the public expects results out of public funding used to run the ITB, and hopes to arrange industry practitioners to meet the new Secretary to voice their views.
Stanley Ng, Chairman of the Professional Commons added the new Secretary should make clear how the ITB would work with other bureaus to review regulations that limit innovation in various areas, as dated laws cannot cope with innovation-enabled development. The ITB should focus on enhancing existing rules and policies to give space that tech companies and startups can flourish and develop in. He said one of the most important tasks for the ITB is to be internal champion of innovation within the government so that other departments would also embrace innovation.
Dr. Joe Yau, Member of IT Voice, said ICT education requires upgrade and ITB should urge the Education Bureau to work with the industry to enhance the ICT curriculum and increase student interest in technology. He stressed that having a consistent supply of talent is crucial to Hong Kong’s future in IT and innovation. Francis Fong, also a member of IT Voice, urged the government to step up its support to local IT companies and workers by procuring more local technology products and services, and cutting down on outsourced IT positions with more employment as it is one of the biggest local users.
Other attendees included Eric Fan, Ken Lam, Stephen Tang, Prof. Joseph Ng and Sang Young, and they also recommended the ITB to promote adoption of innovation in Hong Kong, attract foreign technology companies to Hong Kong, formulate policies favourable to investment in R&D, expedite FinTech development and focus on areas with competitive advantage, promote re-industrialisation and applied research. Charles Mok concluded by pledging to monitor the new Bureau’s work, and reiterated the importance of information security, safeguarding privacy and freedom of internet speech, and also using technology to engage citizens and increase transparency of governance.
