Govt pours $6.4bn into CreateSmart Initiative since 2009: Rosanna Law

The government has allocated approximately HK$6.4 billion to the CreateSmart Initiative (CSI) to support the development of cultural and creative industries in Hong Kong, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Rosanna Law Shuk-pui, said on Wednesday.

The figure was reported at a policy briefing for the Panel on Information Technology and Broadcasting, where Law also highlighted that an additional HK$2.9 billion was injected into the Film Development Fund since its founding in 1999.

*This* effort also aligns with the government's aim to establish Hong Kong as a hub for key sectors, including as a regional intellectual property (IP) trading center and a center for cultural and artistic exchange.

Lawmaker William Wong Kam-fai suggested leveraging the high-quality local animation and comic works to establish an open comic platform to promote Hong Kong’s IP economy, citing the example of South Korea's webcomic platform "Webtoon."

In response, Law stated that the CSI has been funding numerous animation and comic projects, and that "initial success has been observed."

Many funded works are winning awards and being adapted into films, she added, and Wong’s suggestion will be considered in the future.

The CSI was established in June 2009 and is administered by the Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency (CCIDA) as part of the effort to promote local creative industries and build Hong Kong into "Asia's Creative Capital."