Photo shows a view by the Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong, June 11, 2020. (LI GANG / XINHUA)
HONG KONG – The number of skilled and talented people who came to Hong Kong for long-term employment rebounded last year, demonstrating that the city is still attractive to talent from around the world, an official said.
According to the statistics from the Immigration Department, the number of skilled workers who came to Hong Kong for long-term employment under the General Employment Policy and the Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents and Professionals dropped in 2020 amid the epidemic.
The recent responses of the government to address public concerns by making appropriate adjustments to arrangements such as the post-arrival quarantine period and the flight ban are well received by the business and financial services sectors, said treasury secretary Christopher Hui
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The figure rebounded last year with an increase of nearly 20 percent, said Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui Ching-yu when answering lawmakers’ questions on Wednesday.
He said that Hong Kong has always been a highly open economy and any outflow of talent is likely to be temporary.
Hui also noted that the recent responses of the government to address public concerns by making appropriate adjustments to arrangements such as the post-arrival quarantine period and the flight ban are well received by the business and financial services sectors.
He said he believes that Hong Kong will come out stronger after the epidemic and will be able to attract more talent to pursue their career development in Hong Kong.
In order to attract foreign talent, the Hong Kong government has been formulating relevant measures in response to the development needs of the local economy. They include doubling the annual quota of the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme to 4,000 and exploring the extension of the immigration arrangement for non-local graduates.
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The government has also been implementing strategic promotion targeting key markets such as the mainland, Europe, Northern America and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.