First Greater Bay youth internship program launched

To promote the integration of local young people in the development of the Greater Bay Area, the Talents Development Committee and the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the People’s Government of Guangdong Province have jointly launched the Macau Youth Internship Program in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau Greater Bay Area.

A launching ceremony was conducted on Friday at the Macau Youth Incubation Center. This is the first time the SAR government has organized an internship program, hoping to provide more learning opportunities to the local youth.

Local interns will start their journey to Guangdong on July 7, to engage with top companies in Guangdong for a one-month internship, which will finish on August 4.

The internship positions include information technology, creative design, accounting finance, tourism, conventions and railway maintenance management.

It is believed that the internship program will assist to the interns’ future career planning and integration into the development of the Greater Bay Area.

One of the interns, surnamed Wong, who is a student at the University of Macau majoring in mechanical and electrical engineering, said that Macau has a relatively concentrated industry and limited internships.

Speaking to the Times, Wong said he believes that it is difficult for young people to get a chance to study railway maintenance management at Guangdong Metro Corporation.

In the long term, Wong said he still hopes to stay in Macau in order to serve the local community. He also hopes that the internship can afford employment advantages to all the interns.

Another intern, surnamed Lei, who is studying fashion commercial design in the UK, said that creative industries in mainland China are developing rapidly and that the opportunity can help interns to explore the realities of commodity design in the mainland market, thus bringing new ideas to the interns’ future.

Among the 23 participating in this program, half have studied abroad in the past.

Director of the Tertiary Education Services Office, Sou Chio Fai, said during the launching ceremony that Macau youth should be aware of the latest developments in the country and be brave enough to step out of Macau, so as to explore their personal future from various perspectives in order to fully make use of their talents.

According to Sou, this program aims to teach Macau students about Guangdong’s employment situation and accumulate good work experience.

Sou hopes students can take advantage of this opportunity to explore personal development possibilities in the Greater Bay Area.  Sou also hopes that more local students can join the program.