Balancing Values, Pressures and Demands: Strategies for Public Administration in Hong Kong and China

Hong Kong, as a part of the People’s Republic of China, has been experiencing new challenges since 1997. The reintegration of capitalist Hong Kong within the socialist framework of China was resolved with the innovative concept of “one country, two systems.” The application of the system has met with some problems, but the advent of globalization and its demands have imposed new and more formidable challenges. This article examines the challenges of globalization from the perspective of Hong Kong as a unit of China. The key argument is that Hong Kong has long been prepared for dealing with the routine problems of management, internationalization and development of human resources. However, operating as a unit of the Chinese political and administrative system entails a different set of challenges. These include a comprehensive understanding China’s place in the world system, dealing with internal issues, and developing a system and public service that can strike a balance between the local and international demands. A series of reforms have been initiated, but their impact is not clear yet and further changes are required to integrate Hong Kong as an effective component of the system for improving governance in China. The main challenges lie in striking a balance between the values of traditional public administration and new public management, between local and national interests, between external and internal pressures for change, and between demands from the society for service the and capacity of the government to respond.