Provision of Convention and Exhibition Facilities (2013/01/09)  

MR YIU SI-WING: President, according to the Secretary's main reply, the HKCEC has turned down a total of 44 applications for renting exhibition venues and 89 applications for conference venues over the past three years. In view of the shortage of venues, has the Government assisted venue applicants of international conventions and exhibitions to continue to organize events in Hong Kong?

SECRETARY FOR COMMERCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: I thank Mr YIU Si-wing for his supplementary question. Exhibition industry has all along been a very important industry in Hong Kong, and the Government has therefore attached great importance to the promotion of the MICE industry. In fact, upon receipt of additional funding from the Government, the TDC has established the MEHK in late 2008, which is dedicated to promote the MICE industry and provides one-stop support for the MICE events. Records showed that since the establishment of the MEHK, it has provided support to more than 5 800 MICE events, and among which 2 300 have been secured through the proactive lobbying efforts of the MEHK. In 2012, the MEHK provided support to more than 1 800 MICE events. Amongst them, 900 were secured through the proactive lobbying efforts of or facilitated by the MEHK. Thus, the MEHK will continue to assist local organizers of international meetings by helping them to identify appropriate venues and provide one-stop support by all means, including site inspection, promotion, itinerary planning, as well as consultation and referral services for various support and logistical needs. Of course, whether or not an organizer will hold international meetings in Hong Kong, or when and where they will be held, is subject to the stakeholders' consideration of their own needs. And yet, the MEHK will provide assistance by all means. As evident from many previous cases, under the co-ordination of the MEHK, the problem of lack of space had been resolved by transferring some of these international meetings or exhibitions to other venues in Hong Kong.