- Hong Kong SAR hosts the 'Forging a National High-calibre Talent Hub Symposium', with 150+ leaders from Mainland China, Macao, and top global universities.
- Officials and university heads discuss integrating education, technology, and talent, aiming to build a globally competitive, innovation-driven workforce.
- MoUs signed with Shenzhen Qianhai and Guangzhou Nansha regions, boosting collaboration in talent recruitment, development, and cross-border cooperation.
The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) organized the Forging a National High-calibre Talent Hub Symposium, which brought together around 150 participants from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong Province, the nine Mainland cities and four main co-operation platforms of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and the Macao SAR, and 23 top Mainland universities and five of the world's top 100 universities in Hong Kong.
The symposium was entitled 'Regional Collaboration, Empowerment through Science and Education, Global Talent Attraction'. By keynote speeches and thematic panel discussions, the participants shared opinions on the promotion of regional collaborative connections on talent work and the strategic development of a national high-calibre talent center.
In presenting his welcome address, the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, remarked that education, technology and talent are the essential basis for building new quality productive forces and high-quality development. The Hong Kong SAR Government's Committee on Education, Technology and Talents is aiming at the manpower needs of Hong Kong's strategic positioning of 'eight centres' and co-ordinating the promotion of integrated development of education, technology and talent to establish Hong Kong as an international hub of high-calibre talent.
Vice Minister of Human Resources and Social Security Mr Yu Jiadong has said in his video speech that talent is a strategic pillar for the progress of Chinese modernisation. The establishment of a national high-calibre talent centre needs to strengthen the integration of education, technology and talent, and create conditions for talent development with international competitiveness requires reform and innovation of the talent system and mechanism internationally, thus creating new opportunities and impetus for the attainment of high-quality development.
The University of Hong Kong's Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Richard Wong, and City University of Hong Kong's Vice-President (Talent and International Strategy), Professor Li Wen-jung, made keynote addresses at the symposium on how Hong Kong higher education institutions can develop talent to integrate with regional and industry growth.
There were two thematic panel discussions at the symposium. The inaugural discussion, participated in by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, the Director of the Beijing Municipal Talent Work Bureau, Mr Zhang Ruobing, the Director of the Shanghai Municipal Talent Work Bureau, Mr Pan Xiaogang; the Deputy Director of the Talent Work Leading Group Office of the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee, Mr Man Xincheng; and the Secretary-General of the Talent Development Committee of the Macao SAR Government, Mr Chao Chong-hang, addressed synergising regional strengths towards the construction of the talent hub. The second meeting, with delegates from Tsinghua University, Peking University, Fudan University, Harbin Institute of Technology and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, discussed the new models of talent cultivation in innovative education.
Before witnesses Mr Sun, Director of Hong Kong Talent Engage, Mr Anthony Lau signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Deputy Secretary of the Party Working Committee of Shenzhen Qianhai Cooperation Zone, Ms Liang Ke, and member of the Standing Committee and Director of the Talent Work Leading Group Office of theCPC Guangzhou Nansha District Committee, Mr Zhang Jiabing, respectively, for enhanced collaboration in talent recruitment, services, employment and development between Hong Kong and the two regions.
In his concluding remarks, Mr Sun pointed out Hong Kong's diverse strengths in drawing in top talent from around the world and the necessity of cooperation with other parts of the country through interdependence and mutual support to achieve national high-calibre talent hub development more efficiently. He hoped that the symposium, along with the second Global Talent Summit. Hong Kong to be held early next year, would pool valuable experience across different regions in talent attraction, retention, cultivation and employment, to inject new momentum into high-quality development and realize the vision of building a national quality workforce.
