ENG-2010 — Page 148

106 Commerce and Industry

Hong Kong and participated in major international and regional business forums to raise the profile of the city, identify potential leads and provide after-care services to existing companies in Hong Kong. Major events sponsored in 2010 included the Forbes Best Under a Billion Awards Dinner, the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens, Society of Publishers in Asia Awards Dinner, World SME Expo, Super Return Asia, and the Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia Convention.

In 2010, Invest Hong Kong organised joint investment promotion activities to promote the combined advantages offered by the economic integration of Hong Kong and the Mainland with six Mainland provinces and cities, Zhuhai, Fujian, Zhongshan, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Guangdong, and held events in key overseas cities, including Boston, Philadelphia, Zurich, Venice, Tel Aviv, Munich, Dusseldorf and New Delhi. An integrated marketing campaign to promote Hong Kong as China's global financial services centre was launched in London, to be followed by campaigns in other leading financial centres in 2011 and beyond. The department also tapped into the outward investment potential of the Mainland through a series of promotional programmes, including the investment promotion seminars and workshops under the nationwide 'On Your Marks, Get-set, Go' marketing campaign. held in Guangdong and Liaoning provinces. The department completed 52 projects. related to Mainland investments in Hong Kong in 2010, representing 18 per cent of the total number of completed projects.

Small and Medium Enterprises

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) refers to those manufacturing businesses in Hong Kong employing fewer than 100 people, or non-manufacturing businesses with fewer than 50. There are about 296 000 SMEs in Hong Kong, representing over 98 per cent of all local enterprises and employing more than 1.2 million people. To provide assistance to SMEs, three SME funding schemes have been set up to help SMEs secure loans from financial institutions, expand overseas markets and enhance overall competitiveness.

The application period of the Special Loan Guarantee Scheme, which was launched in late 2008 in response to the global financial crisis, closed at the end of 2010. The scheme, which was well received by the trade, was very successful, helping more than 20 000 enterprises tide over the cashflow problem during the financial crisis and preserve more than 340 000 jobs. Nearly 40 000 applications were approved, involving a total loan amount of about $97 billion.

Promotion of Innovation and Technology

Innovation and technology development is a key driver of economic growth. The Government sees this industry as one in which Hong Kong enjoys clear advantage. A series of new measures have been introduced since June 2009 to further support the growth of industries in this sector. Over the years, the Government has been providing hardware and software support to foster innovation and technology development and will continue to create greater synergies among the major stakeholders in the academia, research and industrial sectors.