Hong Kong pledges to step up expansion of innovation and technology talent pool, bolstering city’s hi-tech hub ambitions
- Hong Kong’s Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Sun Dong, said the city ‘has been very proactive’ to enlarging its tech talent pool
- He said that initiative also involved the active participation of universities in grooming skilled people in research and development
“Young people are Hong Kong’s future,” Sun said. He affirmed that the government “has been very proactive” in its efforts to “nurture innovation and technology (I&T) talent, and enlarge the local talent pool”, alongside the active participation of universities in grooming skilled people in research and development (R&D).
“Being home to five of the world’s top 100 universities, and numerous world-class experts and scholars, Hong Kong has access to the best resources available, forming a solid foundation and network for our journey to become an international I&T hub,” Sun said.
That optimism reflects the Hong Kong government’s sharpened focus on fostering the growth of exceptional I&T talent.
The city’s STEM Internship Scheme, for example, encourages university students to participate in I&T-related work during their studies, so that they can pursue a career in that field after their graduation. In education, STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and maths.
The government’s Technology Talent Admission Scheme already provides a fast-track arrangement for eligible companies to admit young mainland Chinese and overseas tech talent to undertake R&D work in the city. Last year, about 108 mainland talent moved to Hong Kong under that scheme, making up 87 per cent of all such admissions, according to Hong Kong government data.
At the same summit on Wednesday, Deputy Commissioner Fang Jianming, from the Office of the Commissioner of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong, lauded the city’s universities for establishing a “comprehensive scientific research and development system, close international collaboration, and a sound intellectual property rights system”.
“Hong Kong has the ability and responsibility to help China overcome ‘neck-choking’ technology weaknesses in important sectors,” Fang said, citing the development of “new productive forces”.
“New technologies, such as artificial intelligence … bring significant impact and new opportunities to higher education,” Peking University president Gong Qihuang said. He added that Peking University has introduced AI teaching assistants in some classes to enhance students’ learning experience.