A survey has shown local young people are dissatisfied with the outcome of government talent cultivation measures and the resources invested into them.
The Macao New Chinese Youth Association street-interviewed 662 people aged between 18 and 44 at the end of May and interviewed another 39 in six focus groups in early August.
It discovered that out of a maximum of 10 points – indicating the highest satisfaction level – average scores of 4.74 and 4.88 were recorded for the outcome of the government’s talent cultivation measures and the resources the government had invested in these measures.
About 47% of respondents agreed resources should be invested in cultivating prospective talent for the four major industries the government wants to develop, namely “big health,” modern finance, high and new technologies, as well as MICE, business, culture and sports. These industries will revolve around Macau’s position as the world tourism leisure center.
Less than 34% of respondents agreed Macau had sufficient reserves of professionals. People in Macau lack global horizons, creative and innovative capacities and expert knowledge and skills, as nearly 40%, 36% and 33% of respondents indicated respectively when asked. About 46% of respondents agreed local young people lack digital literacy compared with their counterparts in developed regions. Slightly over 60% of interviewed youths said they were willing to improve themselves through training sessions.
The survey operator recommended incentives to encourage employers to support in-house vocational training, refinements to the Continuing Education and Development Plan, the increase of support for license examinees, and expansion of investments in scholarships and grants, as well as improvement of digital literacy through formal and vocational education.
The group particularly called for a wider choice of training courses and tiered subsidies in continuing education planning.
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