Over 1,100 local youth attend job fair

The Education and Youth Development Bureau (DSEDJ) highlighted yesterday that the three-day job fair at the Macao Forum aimed to help local university graduates and young people quickly enter the job market, with its director, Kong Chi Meng, committing to create an efficient platform that connects youth with enterprises to facilitate their career beginnings.

The event kicked off yesterday and was attended by the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Anton Tai, and the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, O Lam, who were present at the opening ceremony.

In his speech, Kong encouraged local youth to take advantage of such a platform, urging them to “choose the starting point for their careers and pursue their dreams with courage, pragmatism, and hard work.”

“Youth employment and entrepreneurship are crucial to Macau’s long-term development,” he said.

According to Kong, his bureau aims to establish a comprehensive support system for young people that encompasses “academic studies, employment, entrepreneurship, and career development.”

To achieve this, it has recently shifted career planning efforts to the junior high school level, launched the “Student Career Planning Blueprint” program, and created numerous internship opportunities for students to gain exposure to workplace culture during their university years.

In a bid to further enhance internship opportunities for Macau university students in mainland China, the DSEDJ, in collaboration with the Labour Affairs Bureau (DSAL), will soon introduce a program offering financial assistance for young Macau people to develop their careers in the mainland cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area.

This initiative will provide a monthly allowance of MOP5,000 for up to 18 months to eligible university graduates seeking employment in the Greater Bay Area, helping them leverage the region’s diverse industrial development opportunities to advance their careers.

The three-day job fair will also feature special lectures, roadshows, and various activities aimed at enhancing young people’s understanding of the industry, the market, and themselves, effectively preparing them for entering the workplace.

Informing attendees about the range of job vacancies available, the DSAT director, Chan Un Tong, emphasized that the job openings were “diverse and varied,” catering to the employment needs of young people studying different subjects. The industries represented included comprehensive tourism and leisure, hotels, information technology, banking and finance, aviation, and social services.

In his speech at the ceremony, he encouraged job seekers to take advantage of the opportunity to explore various positions and to enter the labor market promptly.

On the sidelines of the ceremony, Macau Pass, one of the companies participating in the job matching event, told reporters that it is offering approximately 15 job vacancies, including positions for financial analysts and risk control experts.

Among these, there is also a management trainee program being launched for the first time in collaboration with the government, specifically targeting recent graduates to cultivate versatile talent.

A company representative, surnamed Su, stated: “Some positions are specifically targeted at the so-called Z generation, i.e., young people born after 1995. They are eager to find clear career development and promotion opportunities […] We focus more on the general skills that young people need, including good learning and communication skills, as well as a strong willingness to work. Work attitude is also very important, especially in the diversified industrial development of Macau, such as the performing arts and entertainment industries.”

Based on her observations, she pointed out that most job seekers prioritize career development and promotion opportunities, believing that the matching event will effectively attract and recruit young talent.

According to an official statement, approximately 1,100 visitors attended the event on its first day.