How to answer Xia’s call for Hong Kong? Tap global ties and lure talent, experts say

Hong Kong should maintain its international connectivity and attract talent to speed up its economic transformation, analysts and figures from the commerce sector have said, as they hailed the enactment of the national security law for improving the business environment.

Some political analysts also called on government officials to take bolder steps and adopt new thinking, taking advantage of the social stability and order brought by the security law Beijing imposed on the city in 2020.

Their suggestions came after the director of the State Council’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, Xia Baolong, said the implementation of the law was a “watershed” for the financial hub that brought order after chaos.

But Xia, who made the remarks at a forum on Saturday marking the anniversary of the implementation of the national security law, also warned against complacency, calling for unity to support the government and urging the administration to come up with innovative governance concepts to enhance effectiveness.

Political scientist Hung Wing-lok of the School of Governance and Policy Science at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said: “Hong Kong should seize the opportunity to attract more foreign talent to speed up its economic transformation.

“As tensions between China and the United States remain high, Hong Kong should continue to keep its international connectivity to maintain its status as a global financial hub.