HK Labour Secretary Advocates Youth Employment and AI Skills at APEC Human Resources Meeting in Nanjing

2026-09-21 20:02 Last Updated At：20:18

SLW attends 8th APEC Human Resources Development Ministerial Meeting in Nanjing

The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, attended the 8th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Human Resources Development Ministerial Meeting (HRDMM) in Nanjing today (September 21), during which he delivered speeches at the meeting.

Click to Gallery

SLW attends 8th APEC Human Resources Development Ministerial Meeting in Nanjing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

More Images

SLW attends 8th APEC Human Resources Development Ministerial Meeting in Nanjing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The HRDMM has adopted the theme "Modernizing Human Resources Development for A Stronger Asia-Pacific Community", which echoes the theme of this year's APEC China "Building an Asia-Pacific Community to Prosper Together". Addressing the morning session, themed "Promoting High-quality and Full Employment and Employment-Friendly Economic Development", Mr Sun stated that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSARG) is paying close attention to the employment situation of young people amidst the wave of AI. The Government is planning a multipronged strategy and formulating appropriate measures to assist more young people in securing on-the-job training opportunities and work experience. He mentioned that the 30 000 Youth Employment and Internship Programme announced by the Chief Executive in the 2026 Policy Address, aims at encouraging employers to provide more opportunities suitable for young people entering the workforce and to facilitate young people's access to employment information and support services.

Speaking during the first session of the afternoon meeting, themed "Investing in People and Enhancing Vocational Skills Training", Mr Sun said to address the challenges of an ageing population and AI transformation in Hong Kong society, the HKSARG will continue to invest resources in education and skills upgrading. One of the measures is the upgrading of the Employees Retraining Board to the Upskill Hong Kong, which comprises plans to launch in the first half of 2027 an 18-month AI upskilling campaign, including a free online training course for all with a focus on the workplace application of AI.

The HKSARG will continue to promote lifelong learning and skills enhancement for all, providing various types of skill-based training courses, including AI applications, thereby enhancing the competitiveness of the local workforce and support Hong Kong's economic development.

The theme of the second session was "Strengthening and Optimising Social Security Systems for Efficiency, Adaptability and Accountability". Mr Sun briefed the participants regarding the social security system for the elderly introduced by the HKSARG. He mentioned that the Government encouraged active ageing and lifelong education, thereby providing opportunities for the elderly by engaging them in the community. The Government's view is that by shifting from welfare to empowerment, Hong Kong could seek to turn the challenge of longevity into shared opportunities.

Following the meeting, Mr Sun met with the Director-General of Department of Human Resources and Social Security of Jiangsu Province, Mr Zhu Congming, in the evening to exchange views on promoting talent exchanges and co-operation in human resources services between the two places. The Director of Hong Kong Talent Engage (HKTE), Mr Felix Chan, also joined the visit.

Upon his arrival in Nanjing on the evening of September 19, Mr Sun attended the opening ceremony of the International (Jiangsu) Conference on the Development of Human Resources Services yesterday morning (September 20). In his address at the ceremony, he said that the National 15th Five-Year Plan elevates AI to a strategic level, clearly calling for the comprehensive implementation of the "AI+" initiative to empower all industries in every aspect through AI. The HKSARG has just unveiled Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and the 2026 Policy Address, formally designating AI as a core strategic industry for driving Hong Kong's transformation, aligning with the national development strategy and establishing Hong Kong as an international innovation and technology centre. The HKSARG will enrich the Talent List to include more talent categories relating to AI applications, with a view to specifically attracting high-calibre AI technology and industry professionals from both home and abroad.

In the afternoon, Mr Sun also attended a talent entrepreneurship seminar organised by the HKTE in Nanjing, where he met and exchanged views with representatives of local enterprises and individuals interested in moving to Hong Kong. In his speech, Mr Sun highlighted the latest results of Hong Kong's various talent admission schemes and encouraged entrepreneurs in Nanjing and other Mainland cities to make good use of Hong Kong's strengths as an international platform for finance, professional services, and innovation and technology to bring innovative ideas, competitive industries and mature business models to Hong Kong and share the opportunities arising from the integrated development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Mr Sun will travel to Shanghai tomorrow (September 22) to continue his visit.

CFS Issues Recall of US Raw Oysters Due to High E. coli Levels

Ready-to-eat raw oyster sample detected with excessive E. coli

The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department said today (September 21) that the CFS is following up on a sample of ready-to-eat raw oysters imported from the United States (US) that was found with excessive Escherichia coli (E. coli). The CFS has instructed the importer concerned to stop sales, remove from shelves the affected product and initiate a recall immediately. The trade is also urged to stop using or selling the affected product immediately.

Details of the product are as follows:

Product name: Raw oysters

Brand name: American Pearl

Place of origin: US

Importer: Caves Asia Company Limited

Date of harvesting: September 14, 2026

"The CFS collected the above-mentioned sample at the import level for testing under its routine Food Surveillance Programme. The test result showed that the most probable number of E. coli in the sample was at a level of 790 per 100 grams. According to the Microbiological Guidelines for Food, if the most probable number of E. coli in live or raw bivalve molluscs intended for direct consumption exceeds the level of 700 per 100g, the sample is considered unsatisfactory," a spokesman for the CFS said.

The CFS has informed the importer concerned of the above irregularity, and has instructed it to stop sales, remove from shelves the affected batch of the product and initiate a recall. Enquiries about the recall can be made to the importer's hotline at 2423 5118 during office hours.

The spokesman pointed out that as oysters feed by filtering a large volume of seawater, pathogens can accumulate in them if they are grown in or harvested from contaminated water. Raw or partially cooked oysters are high-risk foods. Susceptible groups, such as pregnant women, young children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems or liver diseases, should avoid eating raw oysters.

The CFS will continue to follow up on the incident and take appropriate action to safeguard food safety and public health. The investigation is ongoing.

HK Labour Secretary Advocates Youth Employment and AI Skills at APEC Human Resources Meeting in Nanjing

HK