Three ways Hong Kong can nurture its youth for a bright future
- The shrinking of the youth workforce, income stagnation and the suicide rate among young people are all cause for concern
- As part of its youth development strategy, Hong Kong must focus on mental health, enhancing intelligence and social inclusion
However, in 1996, the median monthly income of those aged 15-24 from their main employment was HK$7,500, 78.9 per cent of the median monthly income (HK$9,500) of the working population.
On the other hand, a report in 2021 noted that 58 per cent of the companies surveyed said that a shortage of talent was the major barrier to being able to upgrade and transform, reflecting a mismatch between the available skill set and industry needs.
To turn chaos into governance, Hong Kong needs to strengthen its youth policy. Here are three suggestions for youth development, focusing on mental health, enhancing intelligence and social inclusion, which are indispensable to young people.
Even though e-learning is cost-effective and means children can avoid a tiring journey to and from school every day, social interaction has an irreplaceable value, especially in improving the resilience of younger students.
It is equally important to enhance the intelligence of young people, especially given the rapid development of technology in recent decades. The Education Bureau’s Primary Education Curriculum Guide, released in early September, increases the flexible classroom lesson time. Suggested allocations for this flexible time include cross-curricular learning and reinforcement of STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) education. I strongly support this.
And with data collected by connected devices around the world growing explosively, and 80 per cent of this data having spatial dimensions, it is also crucial to improve pupils’ data and geospatial awareness.
I hope the authorities can incorporate the use of the geographic information system (GIS), an effective spatial data analysis tool, into the regular curriculum to improve young people’ problem-solving ability and broaden their geospatial understanding.
Since many are students, the authorities are discussing with the Education Bureau and the academic community how to help them return to school. The government is also discussing avenues for employment of these young people after they are released.
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This kind of inclusive attitude is an important step towards social reconciliation. As long as the young offenders have been suitably punished and are willing to reform and start afresh, we should try our best to help them get back on track, so they can also contribute to society.
Furthermore, the government should ensure that those who have served their sentences are treated the same as other students by publicly funded universities. They should not be expelled due to concerns about the institution’s reputation.
In recent years, the government has actively promoted innovation and technology, with the hope of creating better employment opportunities for the younger generation. However, it may take years, if not decades, to develop it into an important economic pillar like finance and logistics, which employ hundreds of thousands of people.
Young people are important human resources, they are also part of our society. If the government can assure them that authorities really care about their well-being, the work of nurturing and retaining our youth will be more effective.
Dr Winnie Tang is an adjunct professor in the Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Engineering; the Department of Geography, Faculty of Social Sciences; and the Faculty of Architecture, at the University of Hong Kong