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It is our great honor to participate in the Annual Taiwan Silver Market Study Tour organized by Jade Club in mid-October 2017. As in Hong Kong, Taiwan is facing the ageing challenge due to low fertility and a prolonged life span. In Taiwan, the elderly has now reached 14% of its total population. The proportion of the elderly is highly significant compared with the other developed countries and its rate of increase is projected to be one of the fastest in the world, and almost 40% of its population will be over the age of 65 by 2050.
To deal with this predictable demographic change, Taiwanese government, academics, non-profit organizations, commercial businesses, and communities are working collaboratively to create a new eco-system to address the current and future needs.
The Study Tour in Taiwan is a rewarding experience, which inspires us the paramount importance of the Silver Industry Education. Education is an incubator to nurture the future leaders to lead, change and serve the future societies.
In Taiwan, we find a number of academics and universities are addressing the market needs from a business management and industry management perspective in order to equip the students with skills in silver market sales and marketing, operation, technology, administration and financial management.
However, in Hong Kong, our education system is merely responding to the needs of the silver market from a healthcare and social care perspective, which offers training in elderly care services planning, delivering and coordinating in a wide variety of elderly health and social care settings.
Without an in-depth understanding of the silver market and acquiring related management skills, it hinders the development and the growth of silver market business, products and solutions to cater for both the local and the global needs. Japan is a vivid example with the export and sales of ageing related products grown dramatically in recent years, with high visibility over future demand by obtaining a sound grasp of silver market products and services management in the last decade.
Hong Kong should follow the footsteps. For education in Hong Kong, Silver Market Management should be added as a module in any management courses (i.e. MBA, BBA), and there should be a full curriculum in the next 2-3 years to meet the upcoming demand in the society.