Theme 3 - Services: Expertise and innovation

Rising living standards and the emergence of new middle classes in the Asian region are generating a growing demand for services in finance, telecommunications, education, health, transportation and tourism. The development and enhancement of skills and expertise in the knowledge industries are crucial to meeting demand in these sectors. Cutting edge research and training requires strong institutional bases but it also thrives in dynamic networks that are well connected beyond provincial and national borders. Working on common problem sets across differing contexts generates new forms of knowledge and incubates innovation.

WA’s regional synergies of time zone, proximity and economic ties place it in a prime position to become an integral part of the expansion in services in the region. Over the past decade, the resources sector has provided a certain stimulus for the development of the services sector in WA. The opening for WA now is to build on its sound higher education base, industry expertise and strong record of technological innovation to ramp-up its efforts to turn it into a major regional player in the field.

Questions

• What challenges are emerging in the delivery of goods and services in the region?

• How are governments and industry responding to these trends, and where are there opportunities of unmet need?

• What are WA’s current strengths in the services sector and how well is the sector furnished by research and training in the knowledge industries?

• To what extent is the WA service sector already a regional player and what are the merits of greater regional engagement in the field?