What experts say Hong Kong gets right and wrong in plan to tap ‘silver economy'
Hong Kong's plan to tap the multibillion-dollar 'silver economy' and bolster elderly residents' spending power requires measures that will increase their participation in the workforce and give them more income, such as a flexible retirement age and better medical insurance, analysts have said.
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The government on Tuesday announced 30 measures aimed at reaping the economic rewards of the ageing population.
Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration Warner Cheuk Wing-hing outlined five key areas his new working group would tackle: boosting consumption, developing industries tied to the silver economy, promoting quality assurance of 'silver products', enhancing financial arrangements for the demographic and unleashing the productivity of older residents.
Elderly women play cards in To Kwa Wan. According to authorities, the spending by people aged 60 and above reached about HK$342 billion in 2024. Photo: Sam Tsang
'As the population ages, the elderly are becoming healthier and wealthier,' Paul Yip Siu-fai, a professor at the department of social work and social administration at the University of Hong Kong, said. 'Providing more preferential offers to them will help drive the silver economy.
'This should be done, but it remains to be seen whether the measures are enough.
More needed to be done to spur the overall growth of the market surrounding the needs of the elderly, he added.
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The number of people aged 65 and above in Hong Kong is expected to increase from 1.64 million in 2023 to 2.67 million in 2043, accounting for about 35 per cent of the population, according to official projections.
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