HKGCC Wishes for Wider Admission of Mainland Professionals to HKSAR

The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce (HKGCC) announced March 19 that they would strongly support the government's plan to increase employment opportunities for Mainland professionals in the HKSAR, but they also hope that the government would expand the current IT and financial services sectors to other industries.

HKGCC declared that the primary consideration must be given to the employment opportunity and wage level of the Hong Kong SAR citizens, but where there are vacancies that cannot be filled by locals, they should certainly be opened to qualified talents from Mainland.

At present, the demand for highly qualified personnel is extending to all works of life actually. As the demand for talented people keeps increasing in Asia Pacific Regions and the whole world as well, Hong Kong has to move quickly to secure the types of people it needs for its future development in order to spur it into an international cosmopolis.

HKGCC also expressed that the implementation of the Admission of Mainland Professionals Scheme first in IT and financial sectors is a positive move that will add greater flexibility to Hong Kong's employment market. However, the government should take into consideration the same issue in other sectors that are lack of qualified personnel. Therefore, the program should likewise be extended in order to ensure the competitiveness of Hong Kong in the international community.

Mr C C Tung, the Chairman of HKGCC said: "With more and more traditional companies developing IT and the related businesses, the growth in finance and business services, IT and e-commerce are expected to be driven by China's entry into the WTO. In addition, more IT and consultancy companies for hi-tech businesses will be needed in Hong Kong to provide suchlike services. The shortage of professionals with high academic qualifications in Hong Kong could be high as 125,000 over the next five years if nothing is done to address the problem."



By PD Online staff member Yin Zhili


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