Hitachi Asia Ltd. officially unveiled the 15th edition of Hitachi Young Leaders Initiative (HYLI 2019) with a focus on fostering a sustainable future and inspiring digital ambitions in youngsters. Minister for Communications and Information S Iswaran, graced the opening ceremony as Guest-of-Honour. The four-day immersion programme from July 9 to 12 will be organised in Singapore. During Minister Iswaran’s address, he spoke about Singapore’s digital transformation journey, and urged youngsters to explore ways of seizing opportunities and driving transformative change in Singapore’s digital future.
Themed ‘Digital Transformation for a Sustainable Future’, this year’s iteration brings together 32 ambitious youngsters from eight countries, namely Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam to discuss the possibilities that digital transformation will bring.
Reimagining Possibilities for Sustainable Future
A keynote speech was given by Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Executive Director of the Secretariat Tan Sri Datuk Dr Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria. The event will feature a number of panel interactions specifically designed to help youngsters develop insights on how they can leverage emerging digital technology to address development challenges in Southeast Asia.
Hitachi, Ltd. Fellow Dr Kazuo Yano spoke on how artificial intelligence can provide real value to the business using examples from 60 cases already applied in 14 domains, and shared how the real purpose of technology is to realise human happiness and well-being.
Over the next three days, field activities will be conducted to give youngsters a glimpse into real-world examples of integrating digital thinking to power innovative growth. This includes a visit to the Deloitte future mobility centre and the Singapore mobility gallery to understand how digital technology changes the landscape of the mobility field.
HYLI will culminate on July 12 with a series of presentations by the youth leaders who will bring their collective knowledge to demonstrate how they can harness smart technologies to solve societal challenges in the region creatively and sustainably in front of an esteemed advisory panel.
Hitachi, Ltd President & CEO Toshiaki Higashihara said: “It is heartening to see stakeholders from diverse backgrounds and expertise supporting HYLI’s vision of inspiring and nurturing young Asian leaders. It is pertinent that we discuss paths towards a sustainable future, against a backdrop of rapid digitalisation, with the young student delegates at HYLI 2019, who will be the drivers of a better tomorrow. Hitachi is rooted in its mission to contribute to society, and we aim to improve the social, environmental and economic values in society, as outlined in our newly formulated 2021 Mid-term Management Plan. I believe the HYLI young leaders will spread their wings to drive the improvement of these three aspects as we move into the future.”
HYLI is Hitachi’s long-standing community relations programme which brings together outstanding youth leaders in the region with government officials, business leaders, NGO representatives and industry experts to discuss regional and global issues. Since its inauguration in Singapore in 1996, HYLI has offered over 340 students, including more than 50 Singapore alumni, the unique opportunity to broaden their outlook while promoting Asian values and cross-cultural understanding.
