Following is a question by the Hon Ginny Man and a reply by the Acting Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Dr Bernard Chan, in the Legislative Council today (March 25):

Question:

     In May last year, the Government announced 30 specific measures to be implemented by the Working Group on Promoting Silver Economy, covering five major areas, namely boosting silver consumption, developing the silver industry, promoting the quality assurance of silver products, enhancing silver financial and security arrangements, and unleashing silver productivity, with the aim of cultivating the silver economy as a new growth area for Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the current progress of the 30 specific measures, as well as the difficulties encountered in taking forward such measures; whether the Government has regularly assessed the effectiveness of these measures; if so, of the details;

(2) whether it has assessed the effectiveness of institutions such as the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation and Cyberport in facilitating the research and development and commercialization of gerontechnology, as well as in promoting the development of the silver industry; and

(3) whether it has studied the specific outcomes achieved in developing the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and even international silver economy markets for local enterprises through the Silver Summit held in November last year and measures such as leveraging e-commerce platforms for promotion; if so, of the details?

Reply:

President,

     The Government attaches great importance to the development of the silver economy. The Working Group on Promoting Silver Economy, as announced by the Chief Executive in his 2024 Policy Address, is chaired by the Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration, with the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development as the Vice Chairman. The Working Group has formulated proposals in five areas.

     The consolidated reply to the Hon Ginny Man is as follows:

     Since its establishment, the Working Group has proactively engaged with the trade and stakeholders and announced in May last year, 30 measures for promoting the silver economy, most of which have achieved positive results. These measures are implemented by different bureaux in conjunction with organisations from various sectors.

     On boosting "silver consumption", the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau (CEDB) has been proactively driving the business sector to include silver economy elements in various exhibitions. In particular, the Gerontech and Innovation Expo cum Summit, organised by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service (HKCSS) and the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP), in November last year brought together numerous exhibitors from Hong Kong, the Mainland and overseas. It also fostered collaboration among the Government, businesses and social welfare organisations, leading to the official promulgation of the Care Food Greater Bay Area Standard, thereby enhancing quality assurance and consumer confidence, and directly boosting the competitiveness of local brands in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), as well as other domestic and international markets. Local exhibitors also engaged in exchanges with exhibitors from the Mainland and overseas, further promoting the industry's expansion to overseas markets.

     On e-commerce, the e-commerce platform, Hong Kong Design Gallery, is collaborating with the HKCSS to market silver products in physical and online stores, thereby further expanding their sales channels of local businesses in the GBA and overseas. The Hong Kong Trade Development Council has also launched the E-Commerce Express to enhance assistance to small and medium-sized enterprises in expanding into the Mainland market through e-commerce.

     On developing the "silver industry", the Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau is dedicated to enhancing the innovation and technology ecosystem, thereby supporting the development of different technology industries (including gerontechnology). In particular, there are over 130 companies engaged in solutions and services related to gerontechnology in the HKSTP and Cyberport. These companies have employed more than 800 staff members and have raised about $156 million in funding. The Social Welfare Department has also expanded the scope of the Innovation and Technology Fund for Application in Elderly and Rehabilitation Care since March 2025. Eligible subvented elderly and rehabilitation service units can procure relevant products, thus helping the business sector explore new business opportunities. As at end-2025, the Fund had subsidised about 2 100 elderly and rehabilitation service units to procure or rent over 27 000 technology products.

     On promoting "quality assurance of silver products", with the support of the CEDB, the "General Requirements of Easy-to-eat Food for Older Adults (Care Food for Older Adults)" was officially included in the list of the GBA Standards in September 2025. On this basis, the Chinese Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong launched the Care Food Product Certification Mark Scheme, with a view to assisting consumers in making clearer choices. In addition, the Federation of Hong Kong Industries and the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency (HKQAA) have launched the Hong Kong Q-Mark Silver Scheme and the HKQAA Hong Kong Registration – Silver-friendly Series respectively, to certify elderly friendly products and services. Through these certification schemes, we hope to further promote various silver products to the retail market, bringing better choices to the elderly consumers and helping businesses expand their product sales networks.

     Initiatives on promoting "silver financial and security arrangements" are led by the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau. Regarding financial products for the elderly, the total premium of the Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation Annuity Plan offered by the Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation Limited reached nearly $9 billion in 2025, representing a year-on-year increase of over 100 per cent. With encouragement from the Insurance Authority, insurers in Hong Kong have offered savings-oriented insurance products that provide policyholders with the right to access retirement facilities on the Mainland. In addition, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, together with the banking industry, has introduced a new e-banking feature that allows customers to deactivate certain high-risk online services, and launched the enhanced Financial Intelligence Evaluation Sharing Tool in end-2025 to strengthen banks' capabilities to detect and prevent fraud and other financial crimes.

     As regards unleashing "silver productivity", the Re-employment Allowance Pilot Scheme (REA Scheme) launched by the Labour Department (LD) has received nearly 69 000 participants and over 40 000 placements were recorded, of which about one quarter involved persons aged 60 or above. The LD is conducting a mid-term review of the REA Scheme and exploring measures to encourage the employment of the elderly and the middle-aged. In addition, the LD held a total of 72 large-scale or district-based thematic job fairs suitable for older and middle-aged persons in 2025, more than doubled that of 2024. The LD also launched the Good Employer Charter 2026 in January this year, encouraging employers to adopt employee-oriented good human resource management measures and implement family-friendly (including elderly-friendly) employment practices.

     We will continue to collaborate closely with the trade to introduce and implement more initiatives for promoting the silver economy, thereby meeting the needs and preferences of the elderly while driving Hong Kong's economic development. The Government will continue to hear views of the Legislative Council, the trade, organisations and different stakeholders, with a view to assisting the Government and the trade in optimising the measures or formulating future directions.

Ends/Wednesday, March 25, 2026
Issued at HKT 16:25

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