Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4
Following is a question by the Hon Ma Fung-kwok and a reply by the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, in the Legislative Council today (October 22):
Question:
There have been public comments that the recent incidents of oversights in government procurement reflect that officials, including Administrative Officers (AOs), merely follow established procedures in performing their duties, and lack knowledge and training in commercial practices. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of local training programmes organised for AO grade staff by the Civil Service College (CSC) annually since its establishment, as well as the content category, and the numbers of hours and participants for each of the programmes;
(2) of the numbers of Mainland and overseas training programmes, thematic visits and exchange activities arranged for AO grade staff by the CSC in each of the past three years, as well as the numbers of hours and participants for each of the programmes or activities; and
(3) as it is learnt that the Government has previously organised a secondment scheme jointly with the business sector to enable AOs to understand actual commercial operations, whether the current Mainland training programmes for AO grade staff include exchanges or placements in departments related to economy, finance and commerce under the Central Government, large state-owned or private enterprises, local authorities, etc., with a view to enhancing their understanding of the Mainland’s economic and commercial operations, as well as local administrative practices?
Reply:
President,
The Administrative Service is a cadre of multi-skilled professional administrators who play a key role in the formulation, implementation and review of public policies. The Government attaches great importance to the training and professional development of Administrative Officers (AO), with a view to continuously enhancing their knowledge and capabilities, thereby ensuring that the Administrative Service remains well-equipped to effectively discharge its leadership responsibilities across different posts.
My consolidated reply to various parts of the question is as follows:
Training of civil servants is provided by the Civil Service College (CSC) and the respective departments and grades to which they belong. The CSC offers general competency training for civil servants at various levels, while individual departments and grades deliver specialised knowledge and professional skills training tailored to their specific needs. This arrangement also applies to the Administrative Service, whose training is jointly managed by the CSC and the Administrative Service Division of the Civil Service Bureau (CSB). To avoid redundancy, I will not specify the division responsible for individual training programmes and the CSB shall be referred to collectively in the following reply.
The CSB has formulated a training and development framework tailored to the needs of AOs at different ranks, enabling them to receive structured training locally, on the Mainland and overseas. In terms of local training, more than 5 800 attendances were recorded with a cumulative total of over 3 400 training days over the past three years (2023 to 2025). Programmes for probationary AOs and Senior AOs cover a wide range of topics, including national studies, country’s foreign affairs and international relations, political systems, legal and judicial systems, etc. There are also courses on practical topics such as public administration and financial management to consolidate officers’ foundational knowledge in areas such as public finance, government financial position, and the approval procedures for capital works projects, etc. The Civil Service Learning Management Portal also provides learning materials on day-to-day operations of civil servants, including procurement procedures, for reference by all government officers.
Regarding the educational opportunities offered by local higher education institutions, the CSB also offers sponsorship to AOs who wish to pursue continuous education to enroll in part-time postgraduate studies in fields relevant to their work. Over the past three years, a total of 36 sponsorships were granted for colleagues to pursue master’s programmes in the discipline of business administration, political economy, and public policy, etc.
For Mainland training, programmes for AOs at different ranks include those conducted by the National Academy of Governance, as well as national studies programmes conducted by Mainland institutions (e.g. Tsinghua University and Peking University), usually lasting from six to 12 days. In addition, individual policy bureaux or departments may organise their own training programmes on national affairs or Mainland-related topics for senior civil servants including AOs. Over the past three years, more than 200 attendances by AOs were recorded for the aforementioned programmes. The CSB has also arranged for senior civil servants with potential for advancement to pursue the two-year Master’s Degree in Public Policy Programme offered by Peking University, and has provided full sponsorship for senior officers to enrol in the part-time Executive Master of Public Administration Programme for the Project of Hong Kong Public Administrative Talents, Tsinghua University. In the past three years, a total of six AOs were arranged to attend these two programmes. These Mainland training programmes cover not only thematic lectures on national affairs, but also include field visits to Mainland government authorities and public organisations (such as the Beijing Municipal Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and the China State Railway Group) as well as local enterprises. These visits allow AOs to develop a well-rounded grasp of the latest developments and operational practices across various sectors on the Mainland, and to enhance their knowledge of the modus operandi of government authorities and businesses on the Mainland, such that they may draw on these experiences as insights that can be flexibly applied across their respective roles.
Moreover, the CSB commenced a civil service staff exchange programme with the Mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in December 2023, and another exchange programme with five Mainland cities, namely Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Wuhan and Hangzhou in December 2024. These programmes enable civil servants from both sides to attach to each other’s side, thereby deepening mutual understanding of the respective structure, regulations, policies and operations. Among the 20 participating civil servants of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), two AOs were attached to government units in key development zones of the Mainland such as Futian and Qianhai in Shenzhen. The attachment provided them with the opportunity to closely observe and take part in practical aspects of local governance, including policy implementation, project coordination, investment attraction, and enterprise support. The experience strengthened their policy acumen and practical capabilities with market sensitivity, serving as a valuable reference for future policy formulation and execution. Under these programmes, 30 Mainland civil servants have also been attached to policy bureaux and departments of the HKSAR Government. Some of these exchange officers have worked alongside AOs, and the professional and informal exchanges during the attachment period have enhanced AOs’ understanding of the social development and civil service operations on the Mainland.
As for overseas training, the CSB has resumed overseas development programmes for AOs in an orderly manner after the pandemic. Since 2024, a total of 50 AOs on completion of probation have been arranged to attend eight-week training programmes at Sciences Po in Paris and the London School of Economics and Political Science. In parallel, the CSB has also sponsored directorate AOs to pursue short-term executive development courses (typically ranging from one to several weeks) or one-year master’s degree programmes at overseas institutions. These programmes cover areas such as international political economy, public policy, and financial and business management, effectively broadening AOs’ perspectives to international public policy and practical governance.
Beyond the training framework, we have a longstanding practice of seconding AOs to various international organisations. Current arrangements include the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, the Financial Action Task Force, and the Asian Development Bank. Moreover, with the support from the Central Government, Hong Kong took part in the United Nations (UN) Junior Professional Officer Programme for the first time in 2019, under which young civil servants including AOs have been sent to take up various positions at the UN offices as Chinese personnel. In the day-to-day work of the diverse roles within the Administrative Service, AOs are also frequently exposed to opportunities to handle public administration matters and engage with markets and the trade, thereby enabling them to continually consolidate their practical skills and knowledge.
All in all, AOs may enhance and consolidate their knowledge and experience in public administration and various professional domains, including economics, finance, and commercial practices, through trainings and other professional development arrangements, such as regular internal postings and secondments to international organisations. The CSB would from time to time review the training and development needs of AOs and timely provide suitable opportunities to prepare them for the challenges in policy development and daily operations at the local, national, and international levels.