- Tech chief says raw materials may need to be sourced in mainland China or overseas while setting objective standards for testing remains an issue
- Rent is also being temporarily waived for tenants of the city’s Science Park and Cyberport technology hubs
A day after government attempts to boost local mask production were revealed to be flailing, Hong Kong's technology chief conceded a plan to produce reusable versions was faring no better, citing the struggle to source raw materials or clean factory space.
Speaking on a Saturday radio programme, Secretary for Innovation and Technology Nicholas Yang Wei-hsiung promised to look at sourcing materials from mainland China and overseas, while vowing to support tech companies amid the city's battle with the coronavirus that causes Covid-19.
The virus has so far infected 70 people in Hong Kong, two fatally, and spurred a citywide scramble for protective gear that has routinely left store shelves barren.
The HK$800 million innovation scheme is part of the much larger HK$30 billion government relief package approved on Friday, which is aimed at bolstering the city's health care sector amid the epidemic and bailing out industries that have been slammed by the financial downturn.
Yang said a blueprint for the reusable surgical mask was ready, but Hong Kong lacked the necessary fabric and raw components to produce the covering. Other challenges included a shortage of clean factory environments and the difficulty of setting an objective standard for testing.
"Is it 90 times, or how many times, that the mask can be washed and reused?" he said. "It is a new product, so there will of course be challenges."
The minister also revealed on Saturday that the government had bought 5,000 disposable electronic tracking wristbands, due to arrive in March, which will allow real-time location sharing by people under home quarantine. There are currently just 400 such wristbands in use.
Yang said HK$12 million from the anti-epidemic fund package will go toward supporting the local tech industry by waiving rent for 1,800 tenants at Science Park and Cyberport, the city's respective biotech and fintech innovation clusters.
He also assured listeners that while some companies might be struggling with cash flow issues or the ability to contact mainland business partners during the epidemic, the sector remained sound and had seen no mass bankruptcies.
City departments can purchase masks worth up to HK$10 million without tendering
The city's ongoing mask shortage was also taken up by Secretary for Labour and Welfare Law Chi-kwong on Saturday.
Speaking on another radio programme, Law said bureaucracy was to blame for delays in getting masks to social welfare institutions such as elderly homes, adding officials too often valued fairness above efficiency.
"There is inertia in the bureaucracy as it is such a huge structure," he said. "But my colleagues said we must not just consider fairness. We must let the masks reach the institutions first. Some people will be getting more, while some others would get less."
Law also reiterated that the city's unemployment rate was expected to climb to 4 to 5 per cent this year from the existing 3.4 per cent.
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