Past Events

Kazakhstan Untapped Potential

Rashid Yerishev, Consul General of Kazakhstan, called on Chamber CEO George Leung and Director for PR & Programs Malcolm Ainsworth on November 9 to discuss how to increase awareness of the country in Hong Kong and to expand bilateral trade. Since the Chamber last visited Kazakhstan in 2013, the country has changed significantly and is looking to diversify its economy. Trade with Mainland China was around US$20 billion in 2019, compared to just US$18 million with Hong Kong, so the Consul General feels there is huge potential to grow bilateral trade.

E.U. Seeks to Bring AI Research Under GDPR

The Covid-19 pandemic has intensified the worldwide development of technology, including AI. Corporates with a presence in the E.U. that use on AI as part of their business strategies will need to pay close attention to possible updates affecting AI under the bloc’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Charles Whiteley, First Counsellor and Head of Political, Press and Information Section of the European Union Office to Hong Kong and Macao, evaluated the effectiveness of GDPR in strengthening personal data protection and guaranteeing data mobility in the E.U. at the Europe Committee’s webinar on 5 November. He also stressed the importance of flexibility and the need for access to data for research and innovation. He emphasized, from the E.U. perspective, that AI is a tool to “serve people,” so the bloc is taking a coordinated approach on the human and ethical implications of AI.

He was joined by Martin Fan, Managing Director of TUV Rheinland HK, who discussed the positive changes brought by GDPR for business in Europe, the measures to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the efforts to balance research and data protection. He used the example of autonomous driving to discuss the relationship between general data protection and technological development.

Reopening Hong Kong Travel: Rapid Testing, Travel Bubbles, and the New Norm to Tourism

Belt & Road Series

Edward Yau, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, updated members on the Air Travel Bubble between Hong Kong and Singapore at a Chamber webinar on 4 November. He said he hoped the bilateral arrangement would be launched by the end of November. He added that the Government has been speaking to 10 other countries to establish similar Air Travel Bubbles, and among these, negotiations with Thailand and Japan are at a more advanced stage. He also reassured members that there will be safety measures and mechanisms in place to ensure that the arrangement is safe.

Danny Yeung, CEO and Co-founder of Prenetics, introduced his company’s latest rapid Covid-19 test and explained their work to help reopen Hong Kong by making low-cost, on-the-spot testing readily available at various airports. He said the new test, which takes 15-30 minutes, had already been deployed at London Heathrow Airport. Once implemented at Hong Kong’s airport, it should be able to perform 12,000 tests per day.

Also speaking at the webinar, Arnaud Bernaert, Head of Shaping the Future of Health and Healthcare of the World Economic Forum (WEF), told members about the efforts by the WEF, collaborating with the Commons Project and Prenetics, to help economies overcome the pandemic. The digital CommonPass could facilitate the return to normality by certifying people as safe to travel, although he said that harmonizing regulations and implementing such a scheme could take time.
 

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