ahead with the proposal for the establishment of an Industrial De- velopment Finance Corporation? On the evidence, it would seem that this is undoubtedly necessary. But why limit financial assistance to industry?
"Why not a Development Finance Corporation which could deal with the overall requirements? Industrial development must go hand in hand. with other forms of development, if it is to be most effective. New indus- trial estates require housing and social services for those employed in the industry.
—
"Regional planning is not devoted entirely to the spending of money. but it must naturally stimulate and provide a means of if I may put it this way
producing the funds which may result from well-planned and carefully-phased regional devel- opment.
"Finally, allow me to raise one other question, which regional plan- ning could answer.
"This Colony's economic basis has been forced by circumstances to change. With the loss of a large proportion of its entrepot trade, it had to turn to other occupations in order to survive and chose light industry which, with the uncertainty of the times, was established on short-term policy.
a
"This did not allow for maximum economy. A number of branches of this industry are now finding them- selves in competition with neigh- bours who can produce similar goods with greater economy, because of easier access to raw materials.
"We are seeing a side development into heavy industry based on ship- breaking. All this showing the enterprise and resiliency of the com- mercial interests in Hong Kong.
"No-one can do more than guess at the right policy to pursue, with regard to industrialisation. In fact, if this is the right policy at all. If it is, what form should it take? Are we right in concentrating so much on textile production? Should there not be more diversification?
"Regional planning could provide the answers, and could indicate the direction this form of development should take. And I would like to add that this cannot be done only by economic planning.
"The more that one studies this subject the more one becomes aware that, in this modern age and with our humanitarian approach to the solution of problems, economic planning cannot be dissociated from social or any other form of plan- ning, and regional planning as a technique provides the umbrella under which all this can come.
"It remains for me to say what is needed to put it into operation in the Colony.
are
an
"Two things
needed. organisation and research to obtain. the data with which it can work.
"We do not have the organisation. Government to some extent fulfils the function, but there is no central regional body which can produce the study and the programme, and perhaps most of all co-ordinate the
efforts of all the many agencies, public, private and philanthropic working in the field and to channel their work in the most advantageous directions, so as to accomplish the overall programme.
"Research when one comes to think of this one realises that there is a surprising amount of this being done, again under unco-ordinated direction. We have a traffic analysis being carried out at the moment, we have a population census to be taken next year. Investigations have been carried out on behalf of Government. into the feasibility of new towns.
"We have private enterprise carry- ing out research into crossharbour transportation and prospecting for minerals.
"There is data available on the incidence of disease, of agricultural and piscatorial production, on trade and production, on housing, from valuable Government reports.
or
"The University, too. is doing
has done research in number of fields, employment. economics, land use, fisheries, to name but a few, which are directly pertinent.
"A regional planning organisation could collate and apply all this valu- able material and initiate its own further research.
"Regional planning enables us to not only ask but to answer the question: Where do we go from here? And after that, how do we get there?"
48
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THE HONG KONG & FAR EAST BUILDER — VOLUME 15, NUMBER 1
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