Hong Kong teams up with Guangdong, Macao to woo global talents

HONG KONG, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- In its drive to attract global talents to the city, Hong Kong is stepping up collaboration with its neighbors, with new deals signed to facilitate human resources cooperation in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA).

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government signed a cooperation agreement on talent evaluation with south China's Guangdong Province and the Macao Special Administrative Region on Tuesday, which is expected to facilitate recognition of certificates in the GBA, making it easier for cross-regional employment for talents.

"Talent is the top driving force for development, and Hong Kong knows it for sure," said Chris Sun, secretary for labor and welfare of the HKSAR government, pointing to numerous policies rolled out by the HKSAR government in the past year to attract global talents.

In his latest Policy Address, HKSAR Chief Executive John Lee revealed further measures to woo companies and talents to the global financial center. The policies included easier access for foreign staff of companies registered in Hong Kong to enter the Chinese mainland as well as a planned "Global Talent Summit" next year to push joint efforts from the GBA in attracting global talents.

"We want to expand and accelerate talent flow in the Greater Bay Area, which has great potential to become a global talent hub," Sun said.

With the development of emerging industries and modern service industries in the GBA, the demand for high-end talents will increase significantly, and Hong Kong needs to work closely with mainland cities to cope with the possible talent shortages, said Benjamin Wong, co-chairperson of China and International Human Resource Management Committee of the Hong Kong Institute of Human Resource Management.

Sun said Hong Kong could share its international experience with the other cities in the GBA while the mainland cities could share with Hong Kong its market potential and development needs.

"The cooperation is win-win," he said.

At the end of this month, the second National Conference on the Development of Human Resources Services will take place in Shenzhen. To promote the event and facilitate human resources industry exchanges, Du Minqi, head of the human resources and social security department of Guangdong Province, led a team to Hong Kong this week.

"We hope the professional service agencies in Hong Kong can take an active part in the upcoming conference in Shenzhen and provide more high-quality jobs for young people in the GBA," Du said.