'Govt Assistance Plan For IT Firms Needs Revamp'

Representatives from the information technology industry have called for a revamp of the government's plan for assistance, saying it is now following a traditional approach, like a welfare programme.

The government has allotted HK$500 million as a technology voucher programme to encourage local firms to upgrade their technology and improve productivity. But since the scheme's launch two years ago, less than half of the 889 applicants have been successful.

Commenting on this over the weekend, Innovation and Technology Secretary Nicholas Yang said a reason for such low numbers may be because the applicants weren't smart enough in presenting their case.

But Keith Tsa, who failed to get funding from the programme set up as a part of the Innovation and Technology Fund, said the approach of the government is flawed.

"The government, right now is more traditional, like [evaluating] education welfare policy ... you submit document, you submit information. Then they have a list of the criteria and they basically see how many criteria you have met. If you couldn't meet the basic criteria, then they fail you," said Tsa.

He said the government should make the application process more interactive, and put less emphasis on written documents.

Tsa told RTHK's Janice Wong that the application process is just too complicated, and not many IT start-ups are keen on applying.