From September 19 to 23, 2018, Minister Wang Zhigang of the Ministry of Science and Technology and his delegation visited Hong Kong and attended the signing ceremony of the Agreement for Strengthening Cooperation in Science and Technology Innovation Between the Mainland and Hong Kong, the opening ceremony of 2018 InnoTech Expo, the Hong Kong Expert Forum, the Hong Kong Youth Forum on Entrepreneurship and other events. Vice Minister of Science and Technology Zhang Jianguo accompanied the visit from September 19 to 20 and signed the agreement with Nicholas W. Yang, Secretary for Innovation and Technology of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
At the noon of September 20, Minister Wang Zhigang and Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor jointly witnessed the signing ceremony of the Agreement for Strengthening Cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation Between the Mainland and Hong Kong and the Agreement Between the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Innovation and Technology Bureau of the HKSAR Government on Jointly Sponsoring Research and Development Projects. Almost 100 delegates from government and science community of Hong Kong attended the ceremony. In response to the comments and suggestions of Hong Kong‘s science community on the construction and development of national key laboratories in the special administrative region, Minister Wang Zhigang also awarded the plates to the 16 renamed state key laboratories in Hong Kong.
On the morning of September 23, thanks to support of the Ministry of Science and Technology, the 2018 InnoTech Expo was opened in Hong Kong. The event was sponsored by Our Hong Kong Foundation. Minister Wang Zhigang attended the opening ceremony and delivered a keynote speech. More than 200 people also attended the opening ceremony, including Tung Chee-hwa, Vice Chairman of the CPPCC National Committee and Chairman of Our Hong Kong Foundation, Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Wang Zhimin, Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and representatives of experts and scholars from the science and business communities in the mainland and Hong Kong. Since 2016, the Ministry of Science and Technology has continuously supported Our Hong Kong Foundation in organizing the InnoTech Expo, focusing on China’s science and technology achievements in the six areas of space, earth, sea, agriculture, industry and medical science during the 12th Five-Year Plan Period. While showcasing the country‘s major S&T achievements, the InnoTech Expo also highlighted China’s S&T development in the past 5,000 years by systemically demonstrating the achievements of the ancient Chinese S&T development from today’s perspective. This has drawn great response in Hong Kong.
During his stay in Hong Kong, Minister Wang Zhigang met with Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Mr. Tung Chee-hwa and Mr. Wang Zhimin and exchanged in-depth views on strengthening STI cooperation between the mainland and Hong Kong and supporting prosperous and steady economic and social development of Hong Kong.
To carry forward the spirit of the important instructions made by General Secretary Xi Jinping in response to a letter from CAS and CAE members in Hong Kong, the Ministry of Science and Technology worked with the Ministry of Finance and other departments to issue a notice of regulations on encouraging universities and research institutes in HK and Macao to participate in central-budgeted S&T programs (special projects and funds). To further implement General Secretary Xi Jinping’s instructions for strengthening cooperation in science and technology innovation between the mainland and Hong Kong, the Ministry of Science and Technology has engaged in close communication with the HKSAR Government and formulated the Agreement for Strengthening Cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation Between the Mainland and Hong Kong, which will serve as a framework document and basis for the STI cooperation. The Ministry of Science and Technology will establish consultation mechanisms for important policies and major matters concerning STI cooperation and support Hong Kong to build itself into an international center of science, technology and innovation.
Minister Wang Zhigang and his delegation also visited local research institutions, including the University of Hong Kong, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute and the Hong Kong Science Park, and held talks with representatives from the science community in Hong Kong on strengthening S&T cooperation. They also held talks with members of HK young entrepreneurs to the mainland. Members of the delegation were Director General Xu Jing of the Department of Innovation and Development, Director General Zhang Xiaoyuan of the Department of Resource Allocation and Management, Director General Ye Yujiang of the Department of Basic Research and Director General Ye Dongbai of the Department of International Cooperation (Office of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Affairs) of the Ministry of Science and Technology.