Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible: Here is an item of interest to swimmers. The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (June 14) that the Environme… read more
Following is the speech by the Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, at the 2018 Green and Social Bond Principles Annual General Meeting and Conference today (June 14):
Mr Scheck (Chief Executive of the International Capital Market Association, Mr Martin Scheck), Norman (Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, Mr Norman Chan), distinguished speakers, ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning. It’s a great pleasure to join you today for the fourth Green and Social Bond Principles Conference. I’m pleased to note that the Conference is taking place in Asia – right here in Hong Kong – for the very first time.
I’d say that underlines the rising prominence of sustainable and green investment, as well as the tremendous power of Asia in propelling the global economy.
It speaks, too, of Hong Kong’s stature as one of the world’s leading financial centres.
The green bond market has come a long good way in just over a decade. It debuted only in 2007, with the issuance of a “climate awareness bond” by the European Investment Bank.
The 2015 Paris Agreement, adopted by 195 countries, has taken it to another level, lending it both heightened urgency and broad credibility across the full spectrum of governments, financial institutions and public and private entities.
In September 2016, green finance was for the first time included on the agenda of the G20 Summit held in Hangzhou, China. The importance of green finance was rightly recognised by the G20 leaders in the communique of the summit.
Last year, the global green bond issuance was around US$160 billion, 80 per cent more than the previous year. And China, the leading advocate of green finance at G20, issued more than US$23 billion worth of green bonds last year. Today, sovereign issuance accounts for about one-third of the total in both developed and emerging markets.
I am glad to report that Hong Kong will soon join the green wave, by issuing government green bonds with a borrowing ceiling of about US$13 billion.
We will, let me assure you, do so under the best market practices, and we will encourage others to arrange financing for their green projects through our premier capital platform.
The sheer scale of capital required to meet the global, low-carbon challenge demands an international alignment of interests, incentives as well as practices, and of course, public-private collaboration.
It helps, enormously, that the Green Bond Principles, with their focus on transparency, disclosure and reporting, are creating a level playing field for investors and issuers.
Building on this foundation, many national and regional authorities governing green bond issuance are developing practices that respond to their local circumstances.
That includes Hong Kong. We are tapping our local expertise to get a head start on green finance certification.
I must say I am encouraged by the favourable market response to our first local Green Finance Certification Scheme, which was launched in January this year.
The Scheme reflects a number of widely recognised international standards, including of course the Green Bond Principles, awarding pre-issuance and post-issuance stage certificates to green-debt instruments.
And we will set up a Green Bond Grant Scheme to subsidise the costs issuers incur in using our Green Finance Certification Scheme.
Another financial incentive, the Pilot Bond Grant Scheme, offers a grant equivalent to half the expenses incurred in each eligible bond issuance.
I’m sure you’ll hear more about this from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority today.
And let me add that the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank and the European Investment Bank, among other international organisations, have issued green bonds here in Hong Kong.
That gives us a bit of a head start. More importantly, our financial services sector has long earned the trust – and the capital – of the international institutions and major corporations.
We aim to build our reputation in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area, as well as the expanding economies under the Belt and Road Initiative.
I am confident that Hong Kong will, soon enough, be well known for green finance as we are now counted on for capital formation prowess, our offshore Renminbi products, and our many attractions as a global centre for IPOs (initial public offerings).
In short, ladies and gentlemen, we see green as the new gold not just for our economy but also for our community and our common future.
I wish you all a very fruitful conference today.
Thank you.
Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible: Here is an item of interest to swimmers. The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (Ju… read more
Following is the speech by the Secretary for Innovation and Technology, Mr Nicholas W Yang, at the opening ceremony of the International Conference on Computational Thinking Education 2018 cum Coding Fair today (June 14):
Stephen (President of the Education University of Hong Kong, Professor Stephen Cheung), Margie (Chairperson of the Steering Committee of CoolThink@JC, Ms Marjorie Yang), Leong (Executive Director, Charities and Community, the Hong Kong Jockey Club, Mr Cheung Leong), Horace (Vice-President (Student Affairs) of the City University of Hong Kong, Professor Horace Ip), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning to you all first. I am really pleased to be here today, joining you at the International Conference on Computational Thinking Education 2018 cum Coding Fair. Today is the second edition of this conference, which serves as an excellent platform to attract hundreds of pioneers in computational thinking education from all over the world, including internationally recognised academics, front-line education practitioners, and most importantly innovation and technology (I&T) professionals.
Thanks to the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust. This event will not be possible without its generous support for CoolThink@JC. And I am personally a staunch supporter of CoolThink. In fact, I have attended several CoolThink events and visited some primary schools joining CoolThink. I firmly believe learning coding skills and computational thinking from an early age can prepare our youth to tackle challenges in their daily lives. CoolThink brings together the Education University of Hong Kong, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the City University of Hong Kong. Through a train-the-trainer programme, CoolThink offers some 16 000 primary students at 32 schools early exposure to coding and computational thinking. I believe such skill building will inspire our very young students’ creativity and problem-solving.
To ensure Hong Kong catches up with other economies in the global innovation and technology race, the Chief Executive announced in her Policy Address last October that the Government will promote I&T development in eight major areas. These include talent development and strengthening popular science education. The Education Bureau has updated the curricula of the STEM Education Key Learning Areas, and published the draft supplementary document on “Computational Thinking – Coding Education” for use by all our schools, providing opportunities for students to learn and apply computational thinking and coding skills.
Computational thinking is becoming more important in many different professions. It is not only for better understanding and making optimal use of technology. It is also a means to create new technology and new innovation.
I am delighted to see events like the Coding Fair today organised and embraced by our tertiary education sector. This helps our younger generation to equip themselves with an innovative mindset and the skills set for the digital era, via computational thinking and coding.
Before I close, let me express my gratitude to the Hong Kong Jockey Club, the Education University of Hong Kong, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the City University of Hong Kong for the great effort in promoting computational thinking in Hong Kong. Have fun with the Coding Fair!
Thank you very much.
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The Labour Department (LD) will hold a public talk entitled “Occupational health in wholesale and retail industry” on June 21 (Thursday). Designed for workers in the wholesale and retail industry, the talk will cover occupational hazards and their preventive measures to enhance workers’ awareness of occupational health.
The talk will be held at 3pm in the Health Education Room of the LD’s Occupational Safety and Health Centre, which is located at G/F, Kwun Tong Community Health Centre Building, 60 Hip Wo Street, Kwun Tong. An occupational health nurse from the LD will lead the demonstration and practice of workplace exercise.
The LD will hold another talk entitled “Occupational safety and health (OSH) for confined space workers” on June 27 (Wednesday). To enhance workers’ OSH awareness in confined spaces, the talk will explain the related OSH hazards as well as their preventive measures.
The talk, to be given by the LD’s occupational hygienist, occupational safety officer and occupational health nurse, will be held at 3pm in Activity Room 1, Hong Kong Central Library, 66 Causeway Road, Causeway Bay.
Both talks will be conducted in Cantonese. Admission is free. For enquiries or registration, please call 2852 4040. read more