Dutch entrepreneurs learn about opportunities to collaborate with Hong Kong in achieving climate goals and advancing ESG practices (with photos)
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Dutch entrepreneurs attending a seminar in Wassenaar, the Netherlands, on October 12 (Netherlands time) knew about the abundant business opportunities available to them to partner with Hong Kong as it strives to reach carbon neutrality before 2050 and advance Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) practices.
The seminar and dinner, titled “Sustainability and ESG in and with Hong Kong – How to make it work!”, was a biannual event for the Dutch business community organised by the Netherlands Hong Kong Business Association and the Netherlands China Business Council, with the support of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Brussels (HKETO, Brussels) and Invest Hong Kong.
The seminar provided an opportunity for Dutch companies to explore potential partnerships with Hong Kong in the context of global climate goals and the implementation of ESG practices. Business leaders from Hong Kong, other parts of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) and the Netherlands shared their experience and expertise during panel sessions on “Sharing best practices in ESG and sustainability” and “Green investing is making money while saving the planet”.
In her welcoming remarks, the Deputy Representative of the HKETO, Brussels, Miss Fiona Li outlined Hong Kong’s plan and challenges in promoting decarbonisation and sustainable development, and how Hong Kong can promote the global agenda.
The Special Representative for Hong Kong Economic and Trade Affairs to the European Union, Miss Shirley Yung, said in her speech that Hong Kong can play to its strengths and make a significant contribution to the global fight against climate change in areas of green finance and green tech.
“As one of the world’s biggest international financial centres, Hong Kong is poised to become a premier centre for green and sustainable finance that serves the green transformation in Mainland China, the region and the rest of the world,” she said.
She noted that more than 100 green tech companies and start-ups operate at Cyberport and Science Park, and that the city combines its strengths with those of its neighbours.
“For example, the Global Innovation Index, which ranks countries and economies based on their innovative capacity each year, has just ranked the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou science and technology cluster second in the world,” she said.
Miss Yung encouraged Dutch businesses to make use of Hong Kong’s excellent services and platform to expand in the region, the GBA, Mainland China and beyond.