Hong Kong Industrialist Jan-Mar 2021

FOCUS STORY | 專題 I n the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting global economic turmoil have brought about unprecedented challenges to almost every level of business across the industries. National governments are all facing pressing needs to revive economic activities and employment, in order to recover from the distressing consequences of the pandemic. Not long after the financial tsunami, leading economies have realised the significance of manufacturing in upkeeping a sound labour market, letting “Industry 4.0” and “re-industrialisation” become the new trends of global industrial development. While in Hong Kong, as early as in 2016, the then Chief Executive also took a visionary step to include “re-industrialisation” into the city’s economic development directives for the first time in his Policy Address . With such mandate, Hong Kong’s administration has rolled out multifaceted policy initiatives in the past few years to lay a strong foundation for “re-industrialisation”, including revising industrial estate policy, facilitating industrial upgrading and transformation, and the launch of Re-industrialisation Funding Scheme etc. The promotion of R&D and “re- industrialisation” has also been included in the smart economy strategy in the "Smart City Blueprint for Hong Kong 2.0" newly released at the end of last year, demonstrating the Government’s commitment to take this policy forward. “Re-industrialisation” is set to become an integral part of the new economy in the “new normal” era, helping to diversify industries and employment as well as to strengthen the overall resilience of the economy. The building of talent pool is an indispensable component for the success of “re- industrialisation”. Since 1980s, local manufacturing plants started to relocate to the mainland, resulting in a diminished job market and loss of skilled labour in the industries. The lack of experienced workforce in industrial upgrade and transformation, R&D and intelligent manufacturing will likely hinder traditional manufacturers in moving towards “re-industrialisation”. How can our industries cope with this brain drain? Are Hong Kong’s institutions ready to nurture the needed talents to fuel the longer-term development of “re-industrialisation”? The Focus Story in this issue will integrate the analysis of scholars and experience of local industrialists on the challenges facing the local talent pool development, seeking to provide the Government, enterprises and institutions with insights to re- think their role in grooming the needed talents for “re-industrialisation” and the new economy of Hong Kong. 過 去一年，新冠疫情對環球經濟帶來前所未有的衝擊，各行各業均面對不同 程度的挑戰。在世紀疫症過後，如何在新常態下復甦經濟、穩定就業，是 各國政府現在必須正視的課題。自金融海嘯後，不少領先經濟體已察覺工業對 穩定就業基礎的重要性，繼而推動「工業4.0」、「再工業化」等政策方針，成為 全球產業發展的新趨勢。香港政府亦未有怠慢，早於2016年《施政報告》，時任 行政長官首度將「再工業化」納入經濟發展的宏圖，數年來推出多種措施如調整 工業邨政策、協助工業升級轉型、成立「再工業化資助計劃」等等，為「再工業 化」打下基礎；而在去年末公布的《香港智慧城市藍圖2.0》中，亦將「推動研發 和再工業化」納入智慧經濟策略，可見政府對此政策方針的重視和承擔，「再工 業化」勢將成為後常態時代下新經濟的重要一環，不但可促進產業和就業多元 化，更有利強化整體經濟的韌性。 然而，若要有效地推動「再工業化」，建立合適人才庫可謂至關重要。自八十 年代開始香港工廠北移，本地就業機會越來越少，導致人才流失，工業界亦逐 漸出現斷層；在「再工業化」下傳統工業須升級轉型，促進自主研發、智能生產， 工 業 人 才 配 對 攻 略 Industrial Talent Matching Strategy 在缺乏經驗人才的情況下，業界應如何推動變革？ 香港的院校又是否能夠為「再工業化」培育所需人 才，以利長遠發展？ 本期專題將結合學者分析和業界經驗，多角度探 討香港工業人才庫所面對的挑戰，助政府、企業、 院校等重新思考自身在培育工業人才上的角色，為 香港的新經濟開拓出路。 I us l a S 16 | 1-3/2021