Dr Jonathan CHOI Koon-shum (Chairman of the 53rd terms of office) October 2023
Hong Kong must device short-, mid- and long-term policies to attract and retain talent and actively enhance its livability. It must also expand its talent pool to ensure sustainable economic growth and stay competitive.
Ongoing talent support and effective human resource planning are vital for Hong Kong to promote continuous economic growth, create new impetus for various industries and stay competitive. To this end, the latest Policy Address presented the vision of “headquarters economy” and proposed a series of measures to attract and retain talent. CGCC is particularly eager to see the HKSAR Government draw up short-, mid- and long-term policies to attract companies and investments to Hong Kong and to retain and nurture talent.
Developing “headquarters economy” to attract global talent
In promoting economic growth, it is important to attract quality enterprises, promote corporate investments and enhance talent support. The policy to develop a “headquarters economy”, laid down in the Policy Address, aims to attract more companies to set up headquarters/ corporate divisions in Hong Kong. New measures proposed to achieve this goal include the introduction of a company re-domiciliation regime, and “multiple-entry visas” to the Mainland for foreigners working in companies registered in Hong Kong, which will allow greater personnel mobility and convenience for these companies. In addition to bringing in quality enterprises, these initiatives will consolidate Hong Kong’s role as a bridge and springboard for foreign enterprises to tap into the Mainland market and for Mainland enterprises to expand abroad.
To create the favorable conditions for the development and uphold the standard of a “headquarters economy”, Mainland and overseas companies should be given necessary support to set up their headquarters/corporate offices in Hong Kong. We therefore hope the HKSAR Government will launch the convenience arrangements for investments in capital projects as soon as possible and implement related measures such as alignment services and tax incentives.
As for the Policy Address’s proposal to establish a physical office for the “Hong Kong Talent Exchange”, we hope to see the office dovetail with the long-term development of various industries and attract talent to stay in Hong Kong, while contributing positively to the continuous enhancement of Hong Kong’s talent policy and system.
Talent is fuel for economic growth
Pinpointing the human resource issues faced by Hong Kong, particularly talent outflow and insufficient labor, the HKSAR Government has launched numerous measures to draw talent and investments. As of September 2023, the Government had received about 160,000 talent applications from non-local residents, 60,000 of whom had already arrived in Hong Kong, indicating the preliminary success of the measures. Nevertheless, the ratio of quality migrants and non-local graduates staying in Hong Kong for an extended period of time remains low. The authorities can perhaps address this by fine-tuning the related measures, such as relaxing the restrictions on non-local students to engage in internships and employment in Hong Kong and to enter the city, and fostering a stronger sense of belonging to Hong Kong among these people.
With regard to the problem of insufficient labor, we suggest that the Government should further explore the possibility of increasing the quota of imported labor and relaxing related restrictions, provided that the fundamental rights of local workers are safeguarded, to address the serious shortage of manpower in certain sectors.
The authorities may also want to simplify the employment visa application procedures and define eligibilities for non-local workers as a way to encourage them to work and live in Hong Kong for a longer time. Meanwhile, to address the needs of various sectors, it may be worth developing a list of specific skills required by businesses in those sectors and providing incentives to non-local talent possessing such skills.
For the long haul, it is important for the HKSAR Government to develop a clear population policy and enhance its policies that can draw in talent in a sustainable manner as well as initiatives to nurture talent. In fact, the development of the future Northern Metropolis University Town can be leveraged to encourage renowned universities from around the world to set up branch campuses in Hong Kong, which will help attract more students from the Mainland and other places. The authorities can also consider reserving a reasonable number of places in primary and secondary schools for Mainland and overseas students to give non-local talent more incentive to live in Hong Kong.
In summary, Hong Kong must device short-, mid- and long-term policies to attract and retain talent and actively enhance its livability. It must also expand its talent pool to ensure sustainable economic growth and stay competitive.
