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On the cards is a plan to cultivate and retain digital talent through enhanced training, while attracting talents from outside Hong Kong.
Hong Kong’s Financial Secretary Paul Chan mentioned plans to promote the city's digital economy, including the establishment of the ‘Digital Policy Office’ by the middle of this year, on his blog on 14 April 2024.
Chan said the Digital Economy Development Committee (DEDC), which has been established and is led by him, has earlier proposed 12 core recommendations to the Government under five major pillars, with an indicative action timeline to set the future framework.
Such plans include:
Strengthening the overall digital policy of Hong Kong
The Digital Policy Office will be set up by the middle of this year upon the completion of the review by the Legislative Council. The office aims to formulate and implement comprehensive policies to push forward the development of digital economy and develop Hong Kong into a smart city.
The Government will also review relevant legislation and guidelines in enhancing data governance, establishing clearer guidelines for data collection and processing, and enhancing enforcement against unauthorised access and misuse, whilst allowing room to accommodate the technology development.
Strengthening digital infrastructure
This includes:
- Expanding the use and coverage of 5G networks;
- Building high-performance computing (HPC) centres/data centres;
- Further promoting electronic payment;
- Launching the ‘Corporate identity (Corp ID)’, the enterprise version of ‘iAM Smart’; and
- Developing a unique geocode system and assigning coordinates to building addresses based on the existing GeoAddress logic, so as to facilitate digital-based economic activities.
Facilitating local and cross-boundary data flow
The Government will encourage local public and private sectors to open up more data, and extend the coverage of the ‘Commercial Data Interchange (CDI)’, enabling easier data sharing with banks under the consent of corporates to facilitate loan approval, especially for small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
The Government will also extend facilitation measures gradually to encourage more industries in Hong Kong and the Mainland to leverage cross-border data to provide more convenient cross-border services for citizens and businesses.
The Government has commissioned an expert group to conduct in-depth research on how to build a good data trading ecosystem for Hong Kong.
Expediting digital transformation
Hong Kong Cyberport launched the ‘Digital Transformation Support Pilot Programme (DTSPP)’ at the end of March to subsidise SMEs in the Food and Beverage (F&B) industry to purchase ready-to-use basic digital solutions, covering digital payment, online promotion and customer management. The programme will be extended to the retail industry, and the entire programme is expected to benefit at least 8,000 eligible SMEs.
Developing a sustainable talent strategy
The Government will cultivate and retain digital talents by strengthening education and training, while attracting talents and technology enterprises from outside Hong Kong, and continuing to enhance the overall digital literacy and competency of the community.
Lead image/ 123rf.com
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