Hong Kong official outlines civil service training, overseas postings
Hong Kong's civil service chief told lawmakers the government offers training, postings in mainland China and abroad, and secondments to international bodies to broaden civil servants' horizons, citing over 150 posts in mainland and overseas offices and about 120 secondments to international organis
Hong Kong's Secretary for the Civil Service told a legislative panel on 26 October that the government provides multiple opportunities for civil servants to broaden their horizons, including training exchanges, postings in mainland China and overseas, and secondments to international organisations.
Speaking at the Legislative Council Panel on Civil Service and Subvented Organisations Employees, the secretary said the city's first five-year plan for economic and social development (2026-2030) calls for improving civil servants' grasp of national strategy and international perspective to build a proactive and innovative workforce.
Under training initiatives, the Civil Service College runs courses and seminars on topics such as national development strategy, geopolitics and international relations. It also sends mid-level and senior civil servants to study at institutions in mainland China and abroad, including a public management master's programme co-organised with Peking University. Officials have also attended advanced management programmes in Australia, France, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The Civil Service Bureau runs exchange schemes with cities in the Greater Bay Area and with Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Hangzhou and Wuhan, where Hong Kong officials temporarily work in mainland government agencies.
For postings, the government's offices in mainland China and overseas economic and trade offices offer more than 150 civil service posts. These postings, the secretary said, deepen officials' understanding of national development and regional political and economic trends affecting Hong Kong, building talent with both mainland and international experience to support the city's role under "one country, two systems".
In the past five years, about 120 civil servants have been seconded to international organisations. Since 2019, with support from the central government and the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong, 17 young officials have participated in the United Nations Junior Professional Officer programme as Chinese personnel. A third cohort of 16 officials has recently begun deployments. Other secondments include government lawyers to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the Hague Conference on Private International Law and the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law, as well as Hong Kong police secondments to Interpol.
In the 2026 World Competitiveness Yearbook, Hong Kong ranked second globally for "government efficiency". The secretary said this reflects the effectiveness of the civil service, and the government will continue expanding training and exposure opportunities to ensure the workforce grasps national strategy and international political and economic trends.