Speech by FS at opening of MaD 2016 (English only) (with photo/video)

Following is the speech by the Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang, at the opening of MaD (Make a Difference) 2016 at the Kwai Tsing Theatre this evening (January 22):

Ada (Wong), ladies and gentlemen,

Good evening.

It is indeed my great pleasure to be back again, speaking to an audience packed with MaD men and MaD women who are full of innovative and audacious ideas. Most of you are young at age, but all of you are also young at heart. And to that, let me add my name.

A simple, three-letter word, "mad" has no shortage of emotionally charged meanings. For us here, however, mad means you - the extraordinary Make a Difference Institute and everyone associated with it. In my mind, it also conjures up the American Beat culture of the 1950s, which celebrates self-exploration as well as non-conformity to the accepted rules and standards.

In his influential novel "On the Road", published in 1957, Jack Kerouac, an icon of the Beat generation, wrote about mad life. He said, "... the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn ...".

Of course, the environment and social backdrop of Kerouac's era are totally different to the world that we are in today, but you get the message I think. I know that every one of you here - from Hong Kong and also from other parts of the world - is no less mad to live and no less mad to dream, and, clearly, no less mad to make a difference.

And I am confident that you are. And that you will continue to do so. Wherever you come from, wherever you're heading in on your life's road. 

For that, my thanks to Ada and the Make a Difference Institute team. For this annual forum, as for your year-round programmes and projects, on both a local and regional level. You are change makers, all of you. Creative change makers. And Hong Kong is certainly much the better for it.

MaD's goal is to challenge young people - people like yourselves - to provoke fresh ways of thinking. Encouraging you to find your own creative way.

Hong Kong is working to do much the same. To make a difference, to ensure that our success in the global economy is sustainable. While Hong Kong's strengths traditionally lie in the areas of trade, finance, investment and so forth, we are increasingly focusing on innovation and technology, together with the creative industries.

Hong Kong's cultural and creative industries now employ more than 200 000 people and are accounting for more than 5 per cent of our GDP.

In my Budget last year, I decided to inject an additional $400 million into our CreateSmart Initiative, a programme that helps develop the creative industries here, while promoting start-ups and nurturing talents. 

Additional resources were also allocated to support the development of Hong Kong's fashion design, Hong Kong's filmmaking industries as well as art and culture industries, to help nurture tomorrow's stars and to help expand our markets as well. 

Ladies and gentlemen, the spirit to brave risks and innovate in pursuit of excellence have always been the core elements of Hong Kong's success. Our readiness to embrace new ideas and explore the unknown has powered our ventures into so many new markets and so many new frontiers before.

We shall continue to strive to build a platform for our young people to fulfil their creative aspirations and fascinating ideas, and to bring along many more diversified career opportunities for our young people - for you. 

In that, the MaD Institute comes readily to mind. MaD is one of the best examples illustrating how we foster public-private partnerships to bring creative promises to our society as well as to our economy. It's why, through CreateHK, we have sponsored this MaD forum over the years. It's why we shall continue to look to you, to MaD, to make a difference.

I know you will enjoy this year's forum. And I wish you all a madly rewarding 2016. 

Thank you very much. Have a good evening.

Friday, January 22, 2016

Video