Dr Yvette To is a postdoc in the Department of Public and International Affairs at City University of Hong Kong. She writes about China’s political economy and current issues in Hong Kong. She is the author of "Contested Development in China’s Transition to an Innovation-driven Economy".
Accessible healthcare means more than making medical treatment available and affordable. Efforts should be made to understand what issues stand in the way of patients accessing treatment and work to eliminate them.
Incentives to encourage couples to have children don’t work unless they substantially reduce the costs – and stress – of raising a child. But how could they, when our competitive modern society continually fosters a fear of falling behind?
Young Hongkongers who study abroad are highly-skilled, bilingual, and possess both local knowledge and international experience and should not be overlooked. It is also important to nurture and retain local people, who, despite all the upheavals, have chosen to stay in the city.
Each time schools have been shut and timetables trimmed, extracurricular activities that aid personal development have been the first to go. While e-learning may make up for gaps in academic teaching, there is no substitute for team-building and problem-solving at school.