HK, UK sign MOU on information technology

June 22, 1999

Hong Kong and the United Kingdom today (Tuesday) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two places with the objectives of fostering and promoting co-operation in information technology, information services and telecommunications.

This is the third MOU on IT co-operation signed between Hong Kong and overseas countries : the first two being with Canada and Australia, signed respectively in May and June last year.

At today's signing ceremony, the Secretary for Information Technology and Broadcasting, Mr K C Kwong, represented the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and the British Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, the Rt Hon Stephen Byers, represented the United Kingdom.

Mr Kwong said that the signing of the MOU signified a concrete step in the further development of the already extensive ties between Hong Kong and the United Kingdom.

"We are pleased with the enthusiastic response we got when the idea was broached with the British Consulate-General in Hong Kong and the Department of Trade and Industry in London," he said.

"We firmly believe that bilateral co-operation involving both the public and the private sectors between Hong Kong and the UK will help to advance our mutual interests in the rapidly evolving fields of information technology, information services and telecommunications."

The Hong Kong/UK MOU contemplates an extensive range of co-operative activities : from commercial and industrial exchanges to investment and technology partnerships, from educational and learning exchanges to the sharing of policy and regulatory information.

"I am confident that with our concerted efforts, the MOU that we sign will deliver the benefits that it promises. My colleagues and I look forward to working closely with our British counterparts in the years to come," Mr Kwong said.

Mr Kwong also spoke briefly on the various activities organised under the MOU on IT co-operation with Canada and Australia. He pointed out that the collaborative activities had proved to be mutually beneficial and enriching for Hong Kong as well as the two signatory countries.

"This has encouraged us to explore opportunities for entering into similar IT co-operation with other countries," he added.

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