Going into its third century of existence, what does the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce (HKGCC) have to do to maintain its pre-eminence and its influential status in Hong Kong? This question is by no means a casual one. In fact, if we do not have an answer to this question, not only will we lose our premier status, we will even find it hard to survive in the 21st century.

This is because as opposed to 40 years ago during HKGCC's 100th anniversary, or 15 years ago during its 125th anniversary, today Hong Kong is a much different society, the business community demands different things of the Chamber, and competition for the scarce membership dollar in a crowded business-associations landscape is ever keener.

The answer which we have come up with is to be able to continue to serve our members in the most efficient, cost-effective, and useful way possible. This basically translates more specifically in four ways.

First of all, Hong Kong after the handover is politically very different than before July 1, 1997. The community is, in Premier Zhu Rongji's words to us a couple of years ago when our General Committee visited him, "very vibrant and noisy." This means that society pressures on the government and on business are growing. The Chamber, therefore, whether it be arguing for not raising taxes, or raising the English language standard here, whether it be pushing for better environment protection policies, or promoting the pay-for-performance concept, whether it be urging the government to liberalise immigration policies to attract the best talent here, or agreeing with the vision of a world-class city for Hong Kong's future, must speak up frequently. Lobbying the government is going to be increasingly sophisticated, varied, and important. Through our legislative representative, our excellent relations with government officials, and our contacts with the press and the community, we voice our concerns unrelentlessly.Secondly, it should be clear to everyone that Hong Kong's economic development is tied intimately to Mainland China. Therefore, for the benefit of our members, the Chamber must continue to deepen and broaden our relations with China. We need to educate our members about China policies, laws, and opportunities. We need to provide leads and personal contacts in China for our members, through the very useful missions and the numerous delegations from all over China. We need to provide workshops, roundtables, and research on helping members take advantage of China, especially after it joins the WTO soon. Hong Kong's future prosperity depends on a closer integration with the Pearl River Delta and on a broader economic relationship with China. The Chamber is at the forefront of advocating this vision and providing training for our members to capitalise when this vision turns into reality.

Thirdly, the Chamber's strength continues to be its international character. Hong Kong is an international city, and the HKGCC is a very useful international bridge between the world and China. Our membership now, which counts around twenty-some percent multinational companies, must maintain its diversity. We have to continue to appeal to local companies, to mainland companies, as well as companies from overseas. This means that programs and services must be varied. This means that we must have good working relations with foreign chambers, officials, and businessmen. The Chief Executive said that Hong Kong is to be a world-class city, and so the HKGCC must be a world class chamber.

Fourthly, we must use a combination of traditional and modern ways to provide service to our members. The Internet and Web-based technologies must continue to be exploited by the Chamber. Our Web site began modestly in 1998 and has become a full-fledged portal with a wealth of information and services online. E-learning in the comforts of members' offices and homes is the trend of the future, although traditional workshops, seminars, luncheons and missions continue to provide up to date information and contacts with speakers, officials, foreign businessmen and with other members. Personal contacts will never be replaced, but are being complemented with technology.