At the HKSOA's 60th anniversary cocktail reception new chairman Oak Maritime (Hong Kong) md Jack Hsu said: “I would like to thank our government for its initiative in setting up the Maritime and Port Board, which has addressed some of the concerns of the maritime sector. Of course, we would much prefer a statutory body in the longer run to take on the work.
"We hope the Government will create an independent, statutory maritime authority to work closely with the industry in adjusting existing policy, and developing new initiatives, in order to improve the competitive nature of our maritime sector,” Hsu concluded.
The HKSOA also supports the setting up of a dedicated policy bureau with sufficient resources to drive the long term development of the maritime, aviation, ports and logistics sectors.
Industry players have long suggested the decoupling of the transport function from the Transport and Housing Bureau (THB), creating a new Transport Bureau that would oversee all road, air and sea transport matters.HKSAR chief executive Carrie Lam was guest of honour at the cocktail and reiterated the government's commitment to formulating a comprehensive strategy to bolster the development of the maritime industry.
Other VIPs included CH Tung, Vice Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and HKSOA Patron, Qiu Hong, Deputy Minister, Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR, Song Ru An, Deputy Commissioner, Office of the Commissioner of Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR, THB secretary Frank Chan, Environment secretary KS Wong, and Director of Marine Maisie. “I believe that our maritime industry will scale new heights, as long as we take good advantage of the opportunities arising from national policies like the Belt and Road initiative, and continue to bring Hong Kong’s competitive advantages into play,” concluded immediate past chairman Wah Kwong Maritime Transport chairman Sabrina Chao.
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