Hong Kong – Opening remarks by STL at opening ceremony of Smart Logistics Datathon 2024 (English only)

     Following are the opening remarks by the Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Mr Lam Sai-hung, at the opening ceremony of the Smart Logistics Datathon 2024 today (April 2):

Professor Cheung (Director of the Asian Institute of Supply Chains & Logistics, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Professor Cheung Wai-man), distinguished guests, fellow participants, ladies and gentlemen, 

     Good evening. It is my great honour and pleasure to join you all here in the opening ceremony of the Smart Logistics Datathon. 

     First and foremost, on behalf of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), I would like to welcome all the young talent from home and different parts of Asia to Hong Kong. I understand you visited our airport and the associated facilities this morning. As many of you may already know, Hong Kong International Airport is among the world’s busiest airports and I am sure you all had the privilege to see for yourselves today. And Cyberport, the place we are at right now, is Hong Kong’s digital flagship. So your visit today basically combines “smart” and “logistics”. I hope you enjoyed the visits and workshops today, as well as the real deal of the competition, which will start later today.

     Digital economy has been transforming the world, reforming traditional business models and creating new industries, and the logistics sector is no exception. From the bread and butter of logistics like supply chain management to emerging or fast-growing sectors like e-commerce, digitalisation is all the rage in the logistics industry. This is precisely why the HKSAR Government made the smart logistics development one of the key directions of growth for Hong Kong’s modern logistics industry in our Action Plan on Modern Logistics Development promulgated in October last year.

     This digitalisation drive could be powered not just by the Government’s effort, but also by industries and academia through collaboration with multiple means. Such collaborative effort is exemplified by no better than the Smart Logistics Datathon today, which is the first promotional event supported by the Logistics Promotion Funding Scheme, which we launched under the Maritime and Aviation Training Fund this January to support the logistics-related organisations and professional bodies for organising campaigns and activities that will promote the industry and hopefully instil in the young minds that we logistic people are a really cool bunch.

     To me, the Datathon is not just a digital challenge, but also a timely answer to the manpower development need that the logistics industry is facing. The industry’s turn towards smartness is irreversible, and it takes a multidisciplinary workforce with specialised and professional knowledge for industry players to stay relevant in the game. In this way, the Datathon not only simulates the data crunch that makes your daily online order delivery seem so effortless, but also provides early exposure to those of you who are talented and interested in modern logistics-related entrepreneurship and innovation. We hope that this unique experience will inspire your creativity and more importantly your interest in joining the logistics industry, which I believe will continue to be one of the sturdiest engines of economic growth for years to come.
 
     My gratitude goes to the Asian Institute of Supply Chains & Logistics of the Chinese University of Hong Kong for organising this remarkable event. I would also like to thank the Airport Authority Hong Kong, and Professor Wu Jing, the Director of the Institute Development Office of the Asian Institute of Supply Chains & Logistics, for providing data for the Datathon, as well as the logistics trade as a whole for your staunch support for the competition and indeed the Government’s effort in promoting the image of and fostering the manpower development for the industry as we have committed in the Action Plan. The Datathon only lasts for three days, but our collaboration shall continue to make the logistics industry as an indispensable pillar of our economy.

     Last but not least, I wish you all a successful and fulfilling experience at the unsleepable 35-hour Smart Logistics Datathon. To our overseas guests, do enjoy your stay in Hong Kong. And to our local participants, I hope you will have a great adventure. Good luck to everyone! Thank you.