Co-chaired by Mr Nicholas Yang, Secretary for Innovation and Technology, and Mr Zhang Jianguo, Vice Minister of Science and Technology, the 13th meeting of the Mainland/Hong Kong Science and Technology Co-operation Committee was held in Guangzhou on December 4.

At the meeting, Mr Yang said that it was a year of breakthroughs on the innovation and technology (I&T) co-operation between the Mainland and Hong Kong. These include the new policy announced in May which allowed universities and research institutions in Hong Kong to directly apply for science and technology funding of the Central Government and use the funding in Hong Kong; the signing of the Arrangement on Enhancing Innovation and Technology Cooperation between the Mainland and Hong Kong (the Arrangement) between the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) and the Innovation and Technology Bureau (ITB) in September; and the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government in November, under which the CAS will arrange for its research institutions to establish their presence in two research clusters to be set up in Hong Kong. All these marked new milestones and signified the start of a new chapter in scientific research collaboration between the Mainland and Hong Kong.

Looking ahead, Mr Yang considered that the opening of three key technology areas under the National Key Research and Development Programme for application by 10 local universities, as well as the launch of the Mainland-Hong Kong Joint Funding Scheme early next year, would be a great encouragement for universities and research institutions in Hong Kong. "The HKSAR Government looks forward to broadening and enriching the areas of innovation and technology co-operation between both places, and taking co-operation to the next level, under the framework of the Arrangement," Mr Yang said.

Mainland members attending the meeting included representatives from the MOST, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR, the CAS, the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the China Association for Science and Technology, the Guangdong Provincial Department of Science and Technology, and the Science and Technology Innovation Commission of Shenzhen Municipality.

The Hong Kong delegation comprised representatives from ITB, the Innovation and Technology Commission, the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, the Research Grants Council, the City University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Baptist University, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, the University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation, the Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited, the Hong Kong Productivity Council, the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute, the Hong Kong Automotive Parts and Accessory Systems R&D Centre, the Logistics and Supply Chain MultiTech R&D Centre, the Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel, and Nano and Advanced Materials Institute Limited.