Opinion | Hong Kong’s youth development blueprint mustn’t forget those from ethnic minority groups
- The blueprint promises new opportunities for Hong Kong’s youth including exchange programmes, internships and vocational courses
- Yet there remain huge barriers for young people from non-Chinese speaking backgrounds in accessing these opportunities
The needs of the youth, which have acquired a new focus and urgency in light of the events of the past few years, received fresh impetus following these words.
It is encouraging to see this initiative and the amount of work that has gone into it. However, I sincerely hope that the blueprint takes an inclusive approach towards youth development, particularly regarding racial diversity. Hong Kong has a small but significant ethnic minority youth population. This youth sub-set faces many of the same challenges as other Hong Kong youth, and then some more.
I have to emphasise the critical importance of Chinese language learning for ethnic minorities. This is the one issue that comes up repeatedly when engaging with employers as part of efforts to improve employment opportunities for ethnically diverse communities.
