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Speech by Secretary for Trade and Industry on budget debate
Following is the speech by the acting Secretary for Trade and Industry, Mrs Regina Ip, on budget debate in the Legislative Council today (Wednesday):
Mr President,
I am grateful to a number of Members for drawing attention to the continued need to upgrade the technological infrastructure for our industries and to promote Hong Kong as a world-class service centre for the Asia Pacific Region.
We believe that manufacturing will continue to play a vital role in the economy in the foreseeable future. To reinforce the competitive strength of Hong Kong's manufacturers, we have been consistently targetting our support towards higher value- added activities. Many of these initiatives benefit small and medium-sized enterprises, which make up nearly 98% of companies in the manufacturing sector in Hong Kong. One example is the Technology Centre, which has reserved a large part of its new premises for small and medium-sized enterprises. Another is the Hong Kong Productivity Council, which is investing more in product development assistance to local companies, thanks to a substantial grant from the Industrial Support Fund. A third is the Applied R&D Fund, offering financial support to local companies.
These and similar initiatives have contributed to the successful transformation of Hong Kong's industries from labour-intensive operations making low value-added products to technology-intensive industries producing high value-added goods and services. Of course, much of the credit goes to Hong Kong entrepreneurs. But the Government has certainly played its part by providing the appropriate physical and technological infrastructure. As a result of sustained government investment in productivity improvement, and corresponding action by manufacturers, labour productivity tripled in the ten years from 1982 to 1992. As a result, Hong Kong's domestic exports are worth more in real terms today than they were in 1983, despite a halving of the industrial workforce. The value-added by each member of the industrial workforce has also more than doubled in real terms, from just over $40,000 in 1982 to well over $80,000 in 1992.
We plan to continue supporting the evolution of the manufacturing sector towards higher value-added activities. In this budget, we are seeking Members' approval to increase the Industrial Support Fund by nearly 17%. Within the next few weeks, we shall be seeking Members' support for the establishment of the Applied Research Council. Later this year, we shall be considering the case for a fourth Industrial Estate and a Science Park.