Prime Minister Helen Clark yesterday launched an initiative for transforming New Zealand into a high-technology, "upmarket" economy, unveiling of a think tank conference in Auckland in August.
Key speakers at the Catching the Knowledge Wave conference include Sean Dorgan, chief executive of Ireland's "jobs machine," the Industrial Development Agency, and SingaporeTrade and Industry Minister George Yeo, architect of growth.
The conference - a partnership between the Government and the University of Auckland - will also feature Professor Michael Porter, of the Harvard Business School, former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating and Lord Robert Winston, British fertility researcher and presenter of the BBC television series The Human Body.
Economic case studies from overseas will be presented to more than 450 participants, who will include politicians, senior bureaucrats, academics, business leaders, trade unionists and community workers.
Helen Clark said the conference built on themes of innovation and the knowledge society and sat alongside measures in last week's Budget, such as the venture capital scheme, extended research and development grants, business "incubators" and centres of research excellence.
The Government would draft a "national innovation strategy" before the conference, and would feed in recommendations from the conference.
Sponsors include Carter Holt Harvey, Telecom, McKinsey, Deutsche Bank, Kiwi Dairies, the New Zealand Herald and the Tindall Foundation.
