HONG KONG: Aging Expert Warns Of Brain Drain

HONG KONG (The Standard), May 16, 2006: Hong Kong's low mandatory retirement age of 60 - coupled with its rapidly aging population and one of the world's lowest birth rates - will lead to a "brain drain" unless the government and individuals plan for the future, a researcher on aging and a legislator said. And, according to a recent survey on aging, most Hong Kong people believe the government should enforce mandatory "additional private savings" and increase the retirement age. The government faces "an interesting challenge" in boosting productivity in Hong Kong as many of its residents near their golden years, Ken Dychtwald, researcher on aging, told a retirement forum Monday. "Unless you dramatically stimulate immigration [into Hong Kong], you're going to have a brain drain [in this case, skilled workers leaving the workforce at 60 when they are still productive]," said Dychtwald, a San Francisco-based doctor and expert on aging, presenting a global survey by Oxford University's Institute on Aging. The "challenge" ahead, Dychtwald said, will stem from a combination of three factors: * A low mandatory retirement age of 60 years; * The world's longest life-expectancy, at 80 years, and * One of the lowest annual birth rates in the world, at 0.9 births per person, meaning the natural population is declining. Social welfare sector legislator Fernando Cheung Chiu-hung spoke to The Standard said he agreed with Dychtwald that action should be taken now to avert a crisis. As more of Hong Kong's working population nears their 60s, many said they do not want to be forced into what they regard as early retirement if it means dropping out of society and doing nothing. Half of those interviewed in the Oxford study want some type of work to fill their free time. And 70 percent, slightly above the world average, listed "nonfinancial reasons" for their need to work past retirement age. But Cheung, an outspoken advocate for minimum wage laws, said about a third of the territory's elderly population is poor, and that number is growing in a society served by what he sees as a faulty social welfare system. "In the next 16 to 20 years, we will see that situation getting worse," said Cheung, who is also a member of the newly formed Civic Party. People are trying to work past mandatory retirement at 60 because they often have to wait five years for any form of Comprehensive Social Security Assistance, Cheung said. "Some contributory action scheme has to be in place, otherwise, we are using tax money to subsidize a distorted pension system. That's certainly not satisfactory." Dychtwald said Hong Kong may not be using its older men and women to its best advantage. The elderly could continue to contribute to the economy, either as full or part-time workers or through emerging markets for the elderly, including pharmaceuticals, adult travel and anti- aging and financial services, Dychtwald said. The survey revealed that 49 percent believe most people will have to bear the cost of their own retirement, with only 12 percent believing they can rely on the government after 60. By Doug Crets Copyright Sing Tao Media Corporation