Speech by PSITI at Greenway 2026 - Driving Sustainability Through Innovation
Following is the speech by the Permanent Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Mr Kevin Choi, at Greenway 2026 - Driving Sustainability Through Innovation today (June 23):
Your Excellency Ambassador Harvey Rouse (Ambassador and Head of Office of the European Union to Hong Kong), Mr Johannes Hack (Chair of the German Chamber of Commerce), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
Good afternoon. It is an honour to join you today at this prestigious forum, a platform dedicated to exploring the profound synergy between innovation and technology (I&T) and our collective journey toward carbon neutrality. To our friends and partners from abroad, I extend the warmest and most sincere welcome to Hong Kong. Your presence here underscores a shared global truth: the challenge of climate change has no borders.
When we talk about decarbonisation, it is easy to relate the discussion to the realm of environmental policy or regulatory compliance. In fact, true sustainability requires us to look much deeper. Decarbonisation, at its core, involves a fundamental I&T transformation. It demands that we reinvent how we live our lives.
Hong Kong is uniquely positioned to lead this charge, driven by the strategic blueprint of the National 15th Five-Year Plan. Our country is unlocking new quality productive forces and advancing future industries, with green technology standing out as a core pillar of growth. To spearhead this vision, our country, through the 15th Five-Year Plan, reaffirms unwavering support for Hong Kong's development into an international I&T centre. In doing so, it positions our city not just as a regional participant, but as a critical launch pad for the sustainable technologies of tomorrow.
Our ability to fulfil this role hinges on a solid foundation. Under the unique "one country, two systems" principle, Hong Kong stands as the only city in the world that seamlessly integrates the China advantage with a distinct global advantage. We serve as the "super connector" between the Chinese Mainland's massive, unparalleled green production ecosystem and the international green technology community. This identity makes Hong Kong the ideal global hub for fostering cross-border innovation and collaboration in the green technology sector.
We are determined and exceptionally well-positioned to carve out a unique niche in green I&T transformation. Our competitive edge begins with talent. Hong Kong is the only city in the world having five universities consistently ranked among the world’s top 100. This dense concentration of academic excellence has cultivated an open, vibrant, and world-class research ecosystem. The HKSAR (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region) Government remains steadfast in its commitment to supporting our scientists and researchers as they develop and deploy breakthrough green technologies. By leveraging our core strengths in upstream research and development, we are actively solving the pressing, real-world challenges of climate change and urban sustainability.
To ensure our brilliant minds have the resources they need, the Government provides comprehensive and structured support. Our Innovation and Technology Fund consistently backs impactful research projects, creating a resilient pipeline that moves discoveries from university labs to the commercial market. To date, the Fund has supported over 160 research and development (R&D) projects on green technology by providing over 53 million euros to drive these initiatives forward.
Furthermore, we recognise that the bridge between academic discovery and commercial viability requires intensive support. We have channeled substantial resources into our academic community, including the Research, Academic, and Industry Sectors One-plus Scheme (the RAISe+ Scheme) launched in 2023. With a total of HK$10 billion or over 1 billion euros, the RAISe+ Scheme is specifically designed to help university teams realise and commercialise their R&D outcomes. This structured financial backing supported pioneering work led by our local institutions, which are tackling sustainability issues head-on.
For example, researchers at the City University of Hong Kong have achieved a major breakthrough by developing next-generation passive radiative cooling technologies. This zero-carbon cooling innovation, actively supported under the aforementioned RAISe+ Scheme, mitigates harsh urban heat island effects and drastically reduces building energy consumption. These achievements underscore the Government's strategic commitment to leveraging cutting-edge R&D as the primary engine to mitigate urban greenhouse gas emissions.
Building on our R&D momentum, our capabilities move beyond traditional services to fostering high-tech, low-carbon manufacturing. Our New Industrialisation Acceleration Scheme, launched in 2024, provides robust funding support of up to HK$200 million or 22 million euros for strategic enterprises. This targeted financial empowerment allows industries in advanced manufacturing and new energy technologies to set up pilot production lines right here in Hong Kong.
For instance, Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) and Hithium, which both specialise in energy storage batteries and systems, have respectively established an international R&D centre and been building a smart production line for high-safety and high-capacity energy storage batteries in Hong Kong. These collaborations prove that Hong Kong provides the perfect, high-standard testing ground for international firms to develop, validate, and manufacture cutting-edge climate technologies.
Beyond our industrial and manufacturing capabilities, we are proud of our thriving I&T parks that nurture the next generation of green entrepreneurs. The Hong Kong Science Park provides comprehensive and unwavering support to start-ups, including those engaged in green technology. Through dynamic incubation programmes, the Science Park empowers emerging enterprises with the essential tools they need to scale. We provide not just technical support, but also business guidance and financial assistance. These targeted programmes have helped numerous start-ups realise their ambitions, transforming raw R&D outcomes into viable, commercialised products.
A cornerstone of this commitment is the GreenTech Hub, established in 2025. Today, this hub houses nearly 200 green enterprises and 1 600 professionals from around the world. We know that technology is only as good as the people who create it, and the GreenTech Hub serves as a vibrant nexus for deep professional exchange. Within the past year alone, the hub has hosted over 360 business-matching sessions and 100 green-themed events. This thriving network connects start-ups and established firms with critical mentorship, corporate collaboration, and a global network of financiers, establishing a premier platform to test and scale cutting-edge climate technologies.
To date, our three I&T parks, namely the Science Park, the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park in the Loop or Hetao area, and Cyberport, altogether have already housed over 300 green start-ups specialising in energy-efficient materials, carbon capture, electric vehicle infrastructure, and much more. In particular, the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park (HSITPL), which I also serve as its Chairman, is our flagship cross-boundary innovation engine. Under its "one-zone, two-park" framework, the park is designed to enable the seamless "four flows", namely people, capital, goods (including bio-samples), and data, between Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland. This means green enterprises can move talent freely, access cross-border funding, transport specialised R&D equipment without customs bottlenecks, and exchange critical environmental and AI datasets in a secure, compliant manner. By unblocking these four essential arteries, HSITPL transforms the Hetao area into a true innovation corridor, where Hong Kong's global connectivity and Shenzhen's vast application scenarios converge to accelerate climate-tech solutions from concept to commercial reality.
Ladies and gentlemen, Hong Kong may be small in landmass, but our technology and environmental ambitions are vast. With robust government backing, world-class talent, and deep synergy, we are not just witnessing the global green transition, we are actively helping engineer its future.
This future relies heavily on international collaboration, and we recognise European enterprises as vital, leading partners in this journey. I invite all of you to partner with us, leverage our thriving ecosystem, and work alongside us to transform visionary green research into impactful market realities. I wish this forum every success, and I hope you all enjoy a highly rewarding, productive, and transformative exchange of ideas.
Thank you very much.
Permanent Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Mr Kevin Choi, Photo source: reference image
Speech by PSITI at Greenway 2026 - Driving Sustainability Through Innovation Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
