Gov’t: Local talent should eye GBA if jobless in Macau

In response to questions asked by a lawmaker yesterday, a senior government official has recommended that local scientists serve across the border in mainland China.

Elsie Ao Ieong, Secretary for social affairs and culture, was invited by the parliament to answer lawmakers’ oral inquiries.

Lawmaker Ron Lam asked the secretary what the government would consider doing to retain young scientists in Macau. According to the lawmaker, many such residents cannot find jobs in Macau and have been forced to leave Macau in their search.

Lam recalled that a Macau scientist, while studying abroad, helped to develop a type of Covid-19 vaccine. The scientist stood in last year’s parliamentary election but did not make it into the legislature. Before he stood for election, he researched in an institution in Shanghai.

To Lam’s question, Ao Ieong first emphasized the small size and scale of the city, a fact he said means new industries will not be as fully developed as in many other countries. She admitted that not many employers in Macau are looking for talent in science, chemistry and pure mathematics.

“However, the Talent Development Committee (SCDT) will still encourage them to learn [in these areas], because they still can contribute to the country and the Greater Bay Area,” Ao Ieong said.

The Secretary’s answer may somewhat contradict what the government as a whole is striving for. The government is currently aiming its policymaking at talent acquisition. It wants to attract talent currently outside of Macau to reside and work in the city.

Discussing the SCDT, lawmaker Pereira Coutinho expressed an confusion at the similarities between the SCDT and the Labour Affairs Bureau (DSAL). “It seems that they are both running job-matching [schemes],” the lawmaker commentated.

In reply, Ao Ieong insisted that the two agencies are, as a matter of fact, different. The SCDT, she said, does not help with recruitment. In contrast, it helps determine what professions are needed and encourages secondary school students to pursue career paths in that particular direction.

Furthermore, the SCDT remains in constant contact with university students and researchers, stimulating their desire to serve Macau. She stressed that there are procedures to follow, so she did not agree that the SCDT and the DSAL are very similar.

She also introduced the Big Data collection led by the government in the hopes of collecting information concerning the academic, employment and accreditation backgrounds of local people at or above the age of 15 years. She said that it would be used to support policymaking.

However, the Big Data compilation work is not very popular, with only 17,500 people having had data registered with the database.

Several tactics will be employed to expand the database, Ao Ieong said. The SCDT will collaborate with the Education and Youth Development Bureau (DSEDJ) to construct a “synergic mechanism”.

Incentives will also be offered to those who are willing to register with the database, such as job-matching services.

While the government aims to develop four pillar industries: Big Health, modern finance, advance and new technologies, and culture and sports, the SCDT has been in touch with representatives from the industries, as well as conducting studies and compiling a list of needed talents and a catalog of talent.

Despite suggesting scientists relocate to the mainland, Ao Ieong added that the government is sparing no effort in attracting talent to Macau.