Talking about technology at Mid-Autumn Festival

Over the past two public holidays, I held four discussion sessions at Government House on technology and related policy issues with my colleagues from various departments.

Many people think about technology only as an industry. In fact, it is closely related to our daily lives. Recently, more and more entertainment and information content is being provided through the Internet, and the number of people doing shopping or other kinds of transactions online is also on the increase. How fast can Internet traffic grow? Will there be serious congestion that may undermine Hong Kong's competitiveness? All these questions are related to our telecommunications policy and demand our early attention.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong has recently attracted the attention of many world-class research institutes with our potential in technological development and our unique advantage as a link between the country and the rest of the world. Many overseas and Mainland research institutes intend to explore the feasibility of collaborating with Hong Kong partners or even establishing branches here. Against this background, I met with friends from a top university in the United States yesterday to identify new opportunities for co-operation.

In daily life, technology can be applied to areas such as public transportation, healthcare and education. Things are happening rapidly. All government departments must plan ahead proactively or else we will lag behind.

Our scientific research efforts and funds are concentrated in our universities. We must therefore promote research collaboration among universities and the application of their research findings.

After dinner yesterday, I saw a bright mid-autumn moon hanging in the sky above a bauhinia tree at Government House.

September 28, 2015