Advertisement

Opinion | Technology is key to achieving Xi’s Jinping’s four goals for Hong Kong

  • Ensuring the president’s proposals become reality will require tech-driven innovation
  • We should improve data-sharing for more informed policymaking, expand our world-class universities to create new opportunities for work and study, and begin work in earnest on the Northern Metropolis

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
2
The Hong Kong Science Park in Sha Tin. Photo: K. Y. Cheng
On July 1, President Xi Jinping put forward four proposals for Hong Kong which I am confident can be realised through innovation and technology.
Advertisement

First, to “improve the level of governance” as Xi said, providing civil servants with the latest technology, and training on how to get the most out of it, is a must. One tool that can be adopted to boost government “capacity and efficacy” is common spatial data infrastructure (CSDI), developed by the Development Bureau and expected to be launched at the end of this year.

The digital portal for sharing geospatial data between government departments and public and private organisations is one of the key technologies outlined in the Hong Kong Smart City Blueprint announced in 2017. It will support cooperation both with and within the government, aid policymaking and smart development, and contribute to a competitive, innovative and sustainable Hong Kong.
Second, we must “create strong impetus for growth”, which can be achieved by developing the Northern Metropolis.
President Xi Jinping delivers a speech during his visit to Hong Kong on July 1. Photo: Felix Wong
President Xi Jinping delivers a speech during his visit to Hong Kong on July 1. Photo: Felix Wong

Xi hopes Hong Kong will “seize historic opportunities offered by China’s development” and “dovetail itself with [ …] national strategies such as the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area” (GBA).

Advertisement
Advertisement