The political economy of Hong Kong's quest for high technology innovation

In the late 1990s, the nascent Special Administrative Region state put forward a new developmental strategy to turn Hong Kong into a global high tech city. Various programmes such as Cyberport, the Innovation Technology Fund, the Hong Kong Science & Technology Park, and the Applied Science and Technology Research Institute were launched. This article examines the conditions that led to the formulation of the Cyberport project and the way it has been implemented. It is argued that the project is deeply embedded in the political economy of the post-colonial Hong Kong state-society relationship. Furthermore, closer examination of the rhetoric and realities of the Cyberport project reveals deep-seated and fundamental flaws in the Hong Kong government's ability and willingness to pursue a strategy for promotion of high technology industries.