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Following is the speech by the Financial Secretary, Mr Henry Tang, at the opening ceremony of the China Day at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) TELECOM WORLD 2006 at the AsiaWorld-Expo this morning (December 5) (English only):
Secretary General, Vice-Minister Jiang, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am most delighted to be here this morning at the Opening Ceremony of the first ever China Day in an ITU TELECOM WORLD event. It is most befitting that this "first" coincides with the first TELECOM WORLD event outside the ITU's home base in Geneva, and the first that takes place in China.
The global information and communications technology (ICT) scene has undergone phenomenal changes in recent years, transforming the way people live and do business, and how governments govern. By November 2006, there are more than 100 million websites on the internet. We have come a long way from 1976 when floppy disks were launched, bringing the capacity to a then whopping 360 KB.
ICT unleashes productivity and potential beyond the realm of possibilities imagined by our forebears. It connects people, businesses and governments. With the China ICT market reaching the final stage of liberalisation under the World Trade Organization Agreement in 2007, and under the strategy of going global adopted by Chinese ICT companies, ICT will indeed connect China and the rest of the world. Business partnership and co-operation between Chinese and overseas companies will bring creativity and synergy benefitting customers around the globe.
Hong Kong is proud to be part of this process. We are the gateway to the China market where a wealth of opportunities await investors. We are also the gateway for Chinese companies to go global. I only need to cite the recent successful listings of major Chinese enterprises on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and their subsequent access to global markets and funding.
The China Day today provides an excellent platform for policymakers and representatives of ICT companies to update their counterparts from all over the world on the latest development in the policy, regulatory and business aspects of China. There will also be a reception this evening to enable industry members to mingle and network.
In fact, to enable participants of the ITU TELECOM WORLD 2006 to reap full benefits from the event, such cross fertilisation efforts started nine months ago during the Exhibitors' Meeting in Hong Kong. This was followed by an outreach exchange programme in several cities of Canada involving officials and representatives from Mainland ICT enterprises and their Canadian counterparts. The China Day today is the climax of the exchange.
I have no doubt that such exchanges which bring China closer to the world and the world closer to China will continue beyond TELECOM WORLD 2006. And I wish the China Day every success.
Thank you very much.
Ends/Tuesday, December 5, 2006
Issued at HKT 12:44
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