For long, fi nancial services, trading and logistics, tourism and professional services have served as Hong Kong’s four pillar industries. But this dynamic city never stops. Now we are rapidly developing six new industries in which Hong Kong enjoys distinct advantages. They will accelerate our drive towards a knowledge-based economy, maintain the city at the leading edge and secure continued prosperity.

Promulgated in March 2011, the National 12th Five-Year Plan stated clearly the support of the Central People’s Government for Hong Kong to develop the six industries where Hong Kong enjoys clear advantages. The six industries include:

Movingtowards a

Knowledge-based Economy

• Medical Services

• Environmental Industries

• Testing and Certifi cation Services

• Education Services

• Innovation and Technology

• Cultural and Creative Industries

Hong Kong — A Medical Services Hub

With very good private hospitals, clinics and highly-skilled medical and dental practitioners and medical research facilities, Hong Kong is well on the way to establishing itself as a world-class centre for healthcare.

Action :• Phased disposal of four new sites for development of private

hospitals from late 2011 or 2012

• Medical training enhanced overall

• Chinese medicine being promoted

• Development of standards for 200 commonly used Chinese herbal medicines

• Chinese and Western medicine shared care service models being tested

• Fostering exchange with Chinese medicine counterparts in the Mainland and around the world

Medical Services

Medical Research :• Researchers in Hong Kong are world leaders in many branches

of high-end medical research. For example, they have pioneered breakthroughs in adult-to-adult live donor liver transplantation, non-invasive prenatal diagnosis, use of oral arsenic trioxide to treat leukemia

• The University of Hong Kong is rated by the “Times Higher Education 2010” survey the top university in Asia and 22nd in the world for clinical, pre-clinical and health-related subjects

• The Public Health Laboratory Services Branch of the Centre for Health Protection is a World Health Organization Verifi cation and Reference Laboratory for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), H5N1, measles and a Supranational Reference Laboratory for tuberculosis

• Hong Kong is poised to become a biotechnology centre, thanks to China’s leading company in the fi eld, Beijing Genomics Institute, basing its main laboratory, BGI (Hong Kong), in the city

Medical Services

Hong Kong — Aspiring to be a Leader in Environmental Services

The city plans to become greener and cleaner and develop environmental industries such as sewage and waste management, environmental engineering and consultancy services. Hong Kong also plans to become a leading centre in the region for green products, technologies and services.

Action :Green Procurement

• Number of items on Government green purchase list expanded to over 100 .The Government also promotes green procurement in services and public works projects

Green Buildings

• Buildings Energy Effi ciency Ordinance, enacted in November 2010, stipulates energy effi ciency standards for key installations in new buildings, such as air-conditioning, electrical, lift and escalator and lighting installations

• Existing buildings are also required to comply with the Codes when undergoing major retrofi tting

• Central building services installations of commercial buildings are required to carry out energy audits once every 10 years, opening up opportunities for companies in electrical, mechanical and environmental engineering and building services

EnvironmentalIndustries

Green Transport

• A HK$300 million (US$38.7 million) Pilot Green Transport Fund encourages the public transport sector as well as goods vehicles to test low-carbon transport technology, including electric vehicles (EVs)

• EVs like Mitsubishi i-MiEV, Tesla Roadster, Nissan LEAF and Smith commercial EVs have already entered the Hong Kong market — more manufacturers welcome

• First Registration Tax on EVs waived till March 2014 — a good incentive given that Hong Kong tax can be up to 100% of car price

Others

• Environmental services sector now included in the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) free trade pact, enabling Hong Kong service providers or foreign companies based in Hong Kong to set up wholly-owned enterprises in the Mainland

• Under the Cleaner Production Partnership Programme, about 90 local environmental technology service providers help factories in the Pearl River Delta adopt cleaner production technology

• Hong Kong Science Park has established a Solar Energy R&D Support Centre to help develop solar energy and related technologies in Hong Kong and the PRD

• Hong Kong hosts Eco Expo Asia which is becoming a premier eco-exhibition in the region

EnvironmentalIndustries

Hong Kong — A Testing and Certifi cation Centre

Hong Kong is a major centre for testing and certifi cation services. The industry — comprising over 200 accredited testing laboratories, inspection and certifi cation bodies — maintains the highest global standards, assuring overseas buyers of the quality and safety of products sourced in the region.

Given the increasing global demand for product safety and quality, there is much potential for the industry, which also supports Hong Kong’s position as an international trading hub.

Testing andCERTIFICATION

Services

Action :• Service providers accredited by the Hong Kong Accreditation

Service recognised by over 75 accreditation bodies in more than 60 economies

• Testing, certifi cation and inspection services cover wide spectrum, including textiles, toys, electronics, food, consumer goods and industrial products

• Highest quality product and management system certifi cation, e.g. ISO 9001 and ISO 14001

• Hong Kong Council for Testing and Certi-fi cation established in September 2009 to advise the Hong Kong government on the overall strategy to grow the industry

• Council works to strengthen the industry and develop new business opportunities in four selected trades — Chinese medicine, jewellery, food and construction materials

• Hong Kong’s accredited testing laboratories can now do testing on a pilot basis for products processed in Hong Kong for the China Compulsory Certifi cation (CCC) System ( e.g. toys, electrical products, information technology equipment and lighting devices) — opening up more opportunities for Hong Kong’s testing and certifi cation industry in the Mainland and promoting trade between the two places

Testing andCERTIFICATION

Services

Education Services

Hong Kong — A Regional Education Hub

We aim to enhance the city’s status as a regional education hub, leveraging three fundamental strengths which set Hong Kong apart as an excellent place for education: cultural diversity, opportunities and international standards.

Action : Internationalisation

• Higher education places for non-local students doubled from 10% to 20%

• Immigration and employment restrictions relaxed — after graduating, non-local students can remain in Hong Kong without restriction for up to one year for employment / internships

• More exchange programmes — more than 3 000 overseas students come to Hong Kong every year

• PhD Fellowship Scheme to attract students from all over the world to pursue doctoral studies in Hong Kong — selected students will get a monthly stipend plus annual research-related travel allowances

Diversifi cation

• Two greenfi eld sites allocated for operators to provide self-fi nancing degree programmes — 4 500 new places expected

• A 16.4 hectare site at Queen’s Hill identifi ed for self-fi nancing institutions — at least 8 000 students, half residential

• A HK$2.5 billion (US$320 million) Self-fi nancing Post-secondary Education Fund being set up for scholarships and quality enhancement

• A site of more than 30 hectares at Lok Ma Chau Loop on the Hong Kong / Shenzhen boundary to be developed as an education zone for higher education institutions and R&D centres

• Four greenfi eld sites allocated for new international schools or expansion of existing ones — will off er about 5 000 new places in coming few years

• More exchange programmes — more than 3 000 overseas students come to Hong Kong every year

• PhD Fellowship Scheme to attract students from

Education Services

Attractions for overseas students:• Learn in a cosmopolitan, liberal as well as biliterate and

trilingual environment

• Attain high-ranking, internationally recognised qualifi cations

• Gain global perspectives and employment opportunities

• Develop valuable cross-cultural competencies

• Learn on the door-step of the world’s fastest-growing destination for overseas students

• 15 degree-awarding higher education institutions, including nine publicly-funded and six self-fi nancing degree-awarding institutions

• Hong Kong universities consistently ranked among the best in the Asia, three of them ranked on the top 50 places in the world and top fi ve places in Asia

• The world’s (and Asia’s) best executive business management programmes

• 48 international schools — more than any other Asian city — off ering over 10 curriculum, including diff erent national curricula and international baccalaureate

• About 1 200 non-local courses, providing degree or above level education

Hong Kong — A Hub for Innovation & Technology

Hong Kong is leveraging its R&D capabilities, excellent infrastructure, world-class universities, sound legal system and robust intellectual property protection regime to become a regional innovation and technology hub.

Action :Hong Kong Cyberport

• Hong Kong Cyberport is a creative digital community and home to over 100 ICT and digital content companies

• Cyberport has industry support centres, including Collaboration Centre, Technology Centre, Knowledge Centre and Entrepre-neurship Centre, which spearhead the growth and development of the local ICT and digital entertainment industry

Hong Kong Science Park

• Hong Kong Science Park is home to more than 340 technology companies in electronics, information technology and telecommunications, precision engineering, biotechnology and green technology industries

• The Park’s incubation programme has nurtured over 320 local technology start-ups and 95 design start-ups to date

• Phase 3 of the Park being developed at an estimated development cost of HK$4.9 billion (US$628 million) — expected to accommodate 150 more technology companies

Innovation and TECHNOLOGY

Innovation and Technology Fund

• HK$5 billion (US$640 million) Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF) provides funding for applied R&D projects to boost productivity and competitiveness of our manufacturing and service industries and drive commercialisation

• Five R&D Centres set up under the ITF: – Automotive parts and accessory systems – Information and communications technologies – Logistics and supply chain management enabling technologies – Nanotechnology and advanced materials – Textiles and clothing

• Up to 50% of the approved funding for an individual ITF project can be used in the Mainland to promote R&D collaboration between the Mainland and Hong Kong

• The R&D Cash Rebate Scheme promotes R&D by enterprises in Hong Kong and encourages their partnership with local research institutions

Cross-border cooperation

• The Guangdong-Hong Kong Technology Cooperation Funding Scheme and the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Innovation Circle facilitate science and technology cooperation between the two places. The latest example is the establishment of a R&D centre in Hong Kong by the BYD Co. Ltd. in 2011 for R&D collaboration with research institutes in Hong Kong to develop electric vehicles

Innovation and TECHNOLOGY

• The National 12th Five-Year Plan off ers huge opportunities — we are working with the Ministry of Science and Technology to enhance Hong Kong’s participation in national-level science and technology projects and enhance collaboration through fostering partnership with research institutes and enterprises in the Mainland. We will also facilitate development of technology clusters which complement with the Mainland’s technology developments

Others

• Additional funding for 12 Partner State Key Laboratories in Hong Kong

• A culture of innovation being promoted in the community

• Hong Kong has earned a world reputation for extensive and highly effi cient use of smart card technology in daily life — Octopus, for example, processes daily more than 11 million transactions valued at over HK$110 million (US$14 million). With seven million people, Hong Kong has one of the world’s largest populations using smart ID cards

Hong Kong — City of Culture and Creativity

Hong Kong is accelerating the development of its dynamic creative industries — fi lm, television, design, architecture, advertising, animation and comics, arts, publishing and digital entertainment.

We have about 32 000 creative industry-related establishments with more than 188 000 practitioners.

Creative industries contribute four per cent (HK$63 billion / US$8.08 billion) to Hong Kong’s GDP annually, making the sector a strong driving force for the territory’s future development.

Multi-faceted schemes are in place to enhance cultural software through arts programme development, manpower training, promotion of arts education, audience building and cultural exchanges.

Cultural and CREATIVE Industries

Action :• The Hong Kong Arts Development Council plans, promotes

and supports the broad development of the arts in Hong Kong, including the literary, performing and visuals arts, fi lm and media arts

• CreateHK, which co-ordinates policy on creative industries and provides a one-stop shop service to the industry, follows a seven-pronged strategy to drive the development of creative industries:

1. Training of local talent 2. Supporting start-up companies 3. Develop local market 4. Expand overseas and Mainland China market 5. Develop creative clusters 6. Foster a creative atmosphere in the community 7. Support development of mega events to establish

Hong Kong as the creative capital in Asia

• The HK$300 million (US$38.7 million) CreateSmart Initiative (CSI) supports the development of creative industries

• The HK$320 million (US$41 million) Film Development Fund (FDF) supports the development of the fi lm industry

• InnoCentre provides a design incubation programme for design start-ups, off ering offi ce space, design education and professional development

• A creative industries landmark at the former Police Married Quarters on Hollywood Road expected to start operation in 2014

• HK$486 million (US$62 million) earmarked for a series of initiatives from 2010-11 until 2014-15, including:

– Stepping up promotion of public art – Trainee programmes for arts administrators – Supporting student participation in arts and cultural

activities – Enhancing the brand of the Hong Kong Arts Festival – Strengthening the development and preservation of

Cantonese Opera

• HK$1.5 billion (US$192 million) injected into the Arts and Sport Development Fund (Arts Portion) as seed money. The annual investment returns will be used for the long-term development of arts and culture

Cultural and CREATIVE Industries