Greater Bay Area: jobs aplenty, more university places coming up, but will Hong Kong youth make their move?
- Hong Kong universities’ mainland campuses will allow more school leavers to pursue degrees
- Experts say Bay Area jobs worth considering, but youth put off by low pay, mainland laws
As Hong Kong tries to reboot its economy amid the coronavirus pandemic, can the Greater Bay Area provide opportunities that are ripe for the taking? In the first of a three-part series ahead of the city leader’s policy address, Chan Ho-him looks at what could be in store for Hong Kong’s youth and its universities if they go to cities under the scheme.
Tammy Ng Ting-yin is unusual for a 23-year-old Hongkonger. She plans to move across the border to work in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) after completing her master’s degree next summer.
While most of her peers would rather remain in Hong Kong, she hopes to land a job in mainland China as an analyst or consultant in public policymaking.
Convinced that the GBA will be increasingly critical in connecting Hong Kong and the mainland, she said: “In the long run, I believe the GBA will be one of the major bay areas in the world.”
Hong Kong, Macau, and nine cities in Guangdong province make up the GBA, and Beijing’s plan is to transform this southern region with 71.2 million people into a hi-tech powerhouse to rival California’s Silicon Valley by 2035.
Opportunities for young Hongkongers to work and study in the GBA have grown steadily in recent years, with Beijing relaxing policies to allow Hong Kong students graduating from mainland-based universities to stay on and find jobs there.