Night view of the Hong Kong Pavilion
SINGAPORE, 29 JUNE 2009 - The Hong Kong government today has awarded a contract to design and provision its exhibition at the World Exposition 2010 in Shanghai China (Shanghai Expo).
Some 239 countries and international organisations will take part in the Shanghai Expo, which is expected to attract more than 70 million visitors.
The theme of HK UBPA Exhibition at the Expo will be "Smart Card, Smart City, Smart Life", complementing the Shanghai Expo theme of "Better City, Better Life".
The Permanent Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development (Communications and Technology), Mr Duncan Pescod, and the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pico Far East Holdings Ltd, Mr Lawrence Chia, signed the contract today.
Under the contract, Pico will provide detailed design and construction, content, set-up, online virtual platform, operations, maintenance and dismantling services.
"Hong Kong's participation in the UBPA Exhibition symbolises the Government's commitment and vision to developing Hong Kong as a model of sustainable urban development through social innovation," said Mr Pescod.
Smart card technology highlighted
In its announcement, the government said the exhibition would highlight Hong Kong's strengths in connectivity, creativity and innovation by demonstrating the successful and extensive use of smart card technology in daily city life.
Existing smart card applications such as the use of Octopus cards, the Smart Identity Card and the Autotoll System in areas such as shopping, public transport and immigration clearance will be shown.
Hong Kong will further explore the use of smart card applications in new areas such as education, medical services and environmental conservation as well as various applications of Radio Frequency Identification technology.
Construction work and exhibition set-up will be completed by early March 2010, while the exhibition will go 'live' to the public on Expo opening day on May 1, 2010.
The Shanghai Expo will be held from May 1 to October 31 at the waterfront of the Huangpu River between Nanpu Bridge and Lupu Bridge.
The outer wall will comprise LED displays that change according to the number of people inside the exhibition.
The Hong Kong UBPA Exhibition will be 530 square metres in total, and will be located at the UBPA site in Expo Zone E on the Puxi side.
Besides taking part in the UBPA Exhibition, the Government will construct a stand-alone Hong Kong Pavilion near the China Pavilion, and organise a series of events, activities and promotions before and during the Expo period.
Hong Kong will also construct a "virtual" pavilion, and a "virtual" UBPA exhibition as part of the Expo Online project.
The Government has also launched an official website - www.hkexpo2010.gov.hk - which will be the main online communications platform for Hong Kong's presence at the Expo.
