HK now wide open, CE tells Saudi tech conference
Chief Executive John Lee, who is visiting Saudi Arabia, has said Hong Kong is now “wide open” for tourists and businesses. He told a technology exhibition in the country’s capital Riyadh on Monday that the SAR no longer has any Covid restrictions. “While Hong Kong has been troubled for three years by Covid-19, we have already opened ourselves up to connect to the world," he said. "And just today [Monday], we resumed normal travel with the mainland. “Therefore… if you are wondering, you need wondering no more. Yes, Hong Kong is onstage again, here on the main stage of the LEAP conference, and on the centre stage of the global arena. We are back in the business of creating business opportunities for you.” Lee added that Hong Kong, with steadfast support from the mainland and with its high degree of connectivity to the world, is a critical gateway for the Belt and Road initiative. The CE said the SAR has “plenty to offer” to the countries involved in the initiative, including Saudi Arabia, in terms of capital and talent. One of the exhibitors in the LEAP event, China Mobile International, said its experience in smart solutions in mainland China and Hong Kong had helped the firm break into the Middle East market. Kathy Han, a Dubai-based senior marketing manager with the company, said the Middle East market offers great potential. “People feel like the infrastructure here is still at a very preliminary stage compared to mainland China or Hong Kong. But what we see is the government really has put a lot of effort into the digitalisation and telecommunications infrastructure,” she said. She said the company was in the process of signing a memorandum of understanding with Zain, a Saudi telecommunications operator, in a bid to reach a collaboration agreement. The CE also met the president and CEO of Aramco, the state-owned oil company in Saudi Arabia. Lee wrote on his Facebook page that he had told Amin Nasser about the unique advantages Hong Kong enjoys and the services the city can provide for the group, including supporting its listing in Hong Kong, handling future funding arrangements and unlocking investment opportunities in the SAR.