Employment and the Economy

Youth I.D.E.A.S. 76 Employment and the Economy — Exploring Green Employment for the Future Green employment has become a global trend. To further promote the sustainable development of society and tackle the climate crisis, various governments have committed to developing green markets and to leading the increase in the number of green jobs and relevant practitioners. Green employment in Hong Kong is catching up with this development. While support measures have been provided, this is still in its infancy. Against this background, our study aims to explore the issue and how to promote the development of green employment in Hong Kong as a […]

Youth I.D.E.A.S. 72 Employment and the Economy — Career Development and Challenges in the New Era of Generative AI The rapid development and application of technology, including generative AI, brings different opportunities. Given generative AI’s accelerated growth and application, and with governments of the world’s main economies starting to implement regulatory frameworks, the issue of how to properly use and guide the development of this technology becomes an unavoidable question for the HKSAR Government and various sectors in Hong Kong. The Youth I.D.E.A.S. has conducted research about “Career Development and Challenges in the New Era of Generative AI”. Data was collected during […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 70 Economic Development Tapping into the Economic Opportunities of the Metaverse   The concept of the virtual “Metaverse” world has become popular since 2021. It is considered a new economy trend worthy of universal attention.[1] The Metaverse generally refers to a network of 3D virtual worlds focused on social connection. People in the real world can enter these artificial worlds with an avatar by using virtual-reality and augmented-reality headsets, mobile phones, personal computers and video game consoles. The Metaverse can also be understood as a huge application of various off-the-shelf technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, virtual […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 66 Economic Development Sustaining Sports Development by Strengthening its Industry   Hong Kong athletes have performed very well in recent years. Historically, athletes from the Hong Kong team won 1 gold, 2 silver, and 3 bronze medals[1] in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, and 2 silvers and 3 bronzes[2] in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, which made the public very excited. However, in terms of public participation in sports, multiple surveys have shown that the physical activity level of Hong Kong’s population is insufficient. The proportion of those who can meet the World Health Organization physical activity […]

Youth I.D.E.A.S. 62 Economics Navigating Career Opportunities for Young People 1 August, 2021   The employment situation of Hong Kong’s young people has been drawing public attention. It is worth looking at how young people’s employment opportunities can be opened up so that their career development choices can be broadened in order to cope with future economic development trends.   Hong Kong is an important financial centre and commercial hub in the world, attracting enterprises of different capital backgrounds. Among them, enterprises from mainland China have been gradually increasing since the 1980s. In recent years, investments from mainland China have […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 58 Economics Tackling Hong Kong’s Brain Drain 14 March, 2021     A talent cluster is one of the key elements in promoting economic growth and social development. Human resources have been the most important asset of Hong Kong in this respect. According to the Report on Manpower Projection to 2027 released by the Labour and Welfare Bureau, the labour force of Hong Kong continues to decline but the overall workforce demand continues to rise. The demand for workers with a bachelor’s degree or above will have increased by 310,000 by 2027, leading to a shortage of […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 54 Economic Department Opportunities for Youth Employment Amid the Pandemic 2 November, 2020   Since the COVID-19 outbreak in Hong Kong in late January 2020, the HKSAR government has introduced a number of measures to reduce social contact and cross-border travel in order to control the spread of the virus. However, these measures have hit the economy and employment hard. As a result, the labour market has been deteriorating since February 2020.   According to the Census and Statistics Department,[1] the overall unemployment rate reached 6.4% for the period July–September 2020, while the overall underemployment rate reached […]

Youth I.D.E.A.S. 51 Economic Development Facilitating Young People’s Access to Financial Services through Virtual Banking 3 July 2020     According to a Business Insider research service report, the total value of all the world’s virtual banks equalled USD 18.6 billion in 2018, with 26 million users and 50 million accounts. It is expected that the growth of virtual banks is rapid and the total value will increase to USD 63 billion in 2024, with 98 million users and 187 million accounts[1].   The Hong Kong Monetary Authority published a revised set of guidelines on the authorisation of virtual banks […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 47 Employment and Economics Development Enriching the Experiences of Working Youth through Overseas Exposures 31 September, 2019     Hong Kong is a cosmopolitan city that bridges east and west. It is also an international trade and financial centre. According to the Census and Statistics Department, 9,040 businesses with overseas parent companies are located here and employ 493,000 people. These businesses cover major industries such as trade, wholesale, retail, finance, and professional and business services.[1] Staff with overseas experience are needed for the daily operation of these businesses as well as for their future overseas expansion.   […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 43 Employment and Economics Development Attracting Diverse Young Talents to Hong Kong 27 June, 2019     The Census and Statistics Department has estimated that the overall labour force participation rate in Hong Kong will decrease gradually from 59.2% in 2016 to 49.6% in 2066.[1] This figure reflects the fact that the labour force is gradually shrinking due to an aging population, a trend that may hinder Hong Kong’s overall economic development. Consequently, in its previous reports, the Employment and Economic Development Group of the Youth I.D.E.A.S. has discussed the issue of encouraging young-old people’s and women’s […]

Youth I.D.E.A.S. 39 Employment and Economic Development Overcoming Career Challenges of Hong Kong Young People in the Greater Bay Area 26 February, 2019     The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Greater Bay Area, GBA) comprises the nine municipalities of Guangzhou, Foshan, Zhaoqing, Shenzhen, Dongguan, Huizhou, Zhuhai, Zhongshan and Jiangmen in Guangdong Province and the two Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macao (known as 9+2). Its total area is 55,904 km2 and the total population was 69.58 million in 2017. Both figures exceed those of the three other main Bay Areas in the World (New York Metropolitan Area, […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 35 Employment and Economic Development Improving Incentives for Women’s Employment 30 October, 2018     According to the Census and Statistics Department,[1] the overall labour force participation rate in Hong Kong will decrease gradually from 59.2% in 2016 to 49.6% in 2066. The figure reflects the fact that the labour force is gradually shrinking due to an aging population, a trend that might hinder Hong Kong’s overall economic development. Consequently, in its latest report, the Employment and Economic Development Group of the Youth I.D.E.A.S. has discussed the issue of encouraging young-olds’ employment as a means of alleviating […]

Youth I.D.E.A.S. 31 Employment and Economic Development Encouraging Young-Olds Employment 26 June, 2018     The world is currently facing the problems of an aging population and a shrinking labour force.  The International Labour Organization (ILO) points out that two billion people will be aged 60 or over by 2050.  This means that there will be a change in labour supply, and many industries will have to attract more workers from the older sections of the population.  The ILO proposes that policies should be formulated to provide post-retirement opportunities to retrain older workers so they can perform other jobs in […]

Youth I.D.E.A.S. 27 Employment and Economic Development e-Sports in Hong Kong 30 January, 2018     e-Sports consists of organised video game competitions that include elements of both video game and sports.  It is a popular activity among young people today.  Participants may watch or take part in competitions.   According the to the Global e-Sports market report, the global e-Sports audience has reached 385 million in 2017 and will reach 589 million in 2020[1].  The Olympic Council of Asia has also announced that e-Sports will become a medal event in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games[2].   Because of its […]

    Youth I.D.E.A.S. 21 Employment and Economic Development Challenges and Opportunities Facing the Development of Creative Craftsmanship in Hong Kong 27 April, 2017     The world is currently facing the problems of an aging population and a shrinking labour force.  The International Labour Organization (ILO) points out that two billion people will be aged 60 or over by 2050.  This means that there will be a change in labour supply, and many industries will have to attract more workers from the older sections of the population.  The ILO proposes that policies should be formulated to provide post-retirement opportunities […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 17 Employment and Economic Development Flexible Employment of Today’s Youth 29 December, 2016     Flexible employment has become popular across the globe.  According to a survey conducted by the workforce management solutions company Kelly Services in 2015,[1] 31% of workers around the world are forsaking the traditional model of employment to pursue free agency, a form of flexible employment.  Free agents represent 34% of the workforce in the Asia-Pacific region.   This Study estimates, based on the figures of the Census and Statistics Department, that there were roughly 523,700 flexi-workers in Hong Kong in 2015, representing […]

    Youth I.D.E.A.S. 13 Employment and Economic Development Diversifying Hong Kong’s Attractions to Boost Tourism 30 August, 2016     Tourism is one of the four key industries in Hong Kong.  In 2014 it generated value added of HK$112.5 billion, which equates to 5.1% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP),[1] and employed 270,000 workers.  It is a significant driving force of Hong Kong’s economic growth.   The number of visitors to Hong Kong has seen double-digit growth since 2010.  However, there was a decrease of 2.5%, to 59.31 million arrivals, in 2015, and visitor numbers dropped further in the first […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 09 Employment and Economic Development Challenges and Opportunities : Hong Kong’s Role as a Super-connector 30 March, 2016     The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.  It is an important long-term foreign development strategy of China.  The central government announced the co-operation and development principles of the BRI in 2013 in a bid to achieve connectivity and to seek common prosperity via enhancing co-operation among different countries and regions along the belt and road.  The aggregate economic value of these places amounts to […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 05 Employment and Economic Development Enhancing the Conditions for Technology Start-ups 30 December, 2015   The number of technology business start-ups has recently seen an upsurge in Hong Kong as the start-up ecosystem has experienced continuous growth.  According to a recent survey by Invest Hong Kong,[1] there were 1,912 start-up founders in 2015, a 71% increase from 2014, while the number of start-ups had risen to 1,558, a 46% increase from the previous year.  Technology start-ups such as information technology businesses and e-commerce businesses in particular are very common.   However, Hong Kong ranked 11th in The […]

  Youth I.D.E.A.S. 01 Employment and Economic Development The Opportunities of Vocational Training for Youth Employment 30 July, 2015     There is a strong demand for staffing in Hong Kong.  According to a paper on Manpower Projection produced by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) government, the total labour supply in 2022 is projected to fall short of the total requirements by 120,000.  Local surveys also show that there are severe labour shortages in professional and technical roles in specific industries such as construction and health care.  The situation is unlikely to be resolved in the foreseeable future.  […]