Tech talent moving to Hong Kong more worried about living costs than Article 23 domestic national security law, Science Park executives say
- CEO of Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation says ‘main obstacle’ for talent is accommodation, with facility ramping up housing scheme for professionals
- Enactment of domestic national security law has not come up in conversations with fresh recruits, says Fanny Wong, head of talent and human resources
The CEO and head of talent at the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation said on Sunday that the institution was providing more affordable accommodation and increasing the number of university partners for its global internship programme to further attract workers.
Asked whether the new legislation or news reports about the city had prompted worries among potential new arrivals, head of talent and human resources Fanny Wong said she had “not really heard of or touched on [such] topics” in conversations with the recruits.
“They care more about their career prospects here, how much they would be making and whether they could put their strengths to good use,” she said. “As Hong Kong’s living costs are high, they also consider the location of their accommodation in relation to the office.”
The domestic national security legislation, mandated under Article 23 of the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, came into effect on March 23.
The legislation, which complements the national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020, covers 39 offences divided into five categories: treason; insurrection, incitement to mutiny and disaffection and acts with seditious intention; sabotage; external interference; and theft of state secrets and espionage.