Visiting Doha, Qatar, Financial Secretary Paul Chan participated yesterday in events at the Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
Mr Chan attended the Annual Meeting’s opening ceremony, the AIIB Board of Governors session, and the Governors’ Business Roundtable.
Addressing the roundtable, he spoke of how the AIIB can deepen and broaden its support for member economies.
He said Hong Kong will continue to support the AIIB in helping members undertake preparatory work for infrastructure projects, secure financing and achieve development goals.
Speaking at a seminar on digital public infrastructure, the finance chief cited Hong Kong’s “iAM Smart”, Faster Payment System and Commercial Data Interchange as he explained how digital infrastructure can improve the efficiency of public services, facilitate payments and cross-border transactions, and help small and medium-sized enterprises make better use of data to obtain trade financing.
He said the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) is creating new opportunities, and outlined that Hong Kong is applying AI in public services and across different sectors of the economy, while also strengthening computing power, along with data and digital infrastructure, and enhancing AI literacy across the community.
Mr Chan also met representatives from various countries and organisations to exchange views on financing issues and co-operation.
At his meeting with Uzbekistan’s Minister of Investment, Industry & Trade Laziz Kudratov, the two officials discussed strengthening co-operation in areas including trade, investment, finance and infrastructure development.
Mr Chan also met Qatar Development Bank Chief Executive Officer Abdulrahman Hesham Al-Sowaidi, and HSBC Chief Executive Officer of Infrastructure Finance & Sustainability Danny Alexander.
In the evening, Mr Chan attended the AIIB Annual Meeting Members’ Dinner hosted by Qatar. He concluded his visit and departed for Hong Kong late last night.