Four Hongkongers are set to be hired as civil servants by the Shenzhen municipal government in a first-ever opening for Hong Kong and Macau residents that saw 446 compete for five positions.

Among them is Lai Yuhui, who will be hired for a position with the Shenzhen Financial Supervisory Authority. Lai has working experience in both Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

The imminent hiring comes after a December announcement by Shenzhen that five posts would be reserved for SAR residents. About 90 people competed for one position on average.

The posts cover areas such as administration and finance, urban planning, foreign affairs management and health regulation, with offices in downtown districts like Futian, Luowu and Nanshan.

Lai, the standout candidate among 83 in the race for the position, said his future career path would be heavily connected with Greater Bay Area developments.

“Given the opportunity to work under the mainland’s system, it is a good time for me to rethink and understand more about the country’s development,” he said.

The 26-year-old also said many staff in Hong Kong companies were learning Putonghua and trying to understand the mainland’s culture in the hope of integrating into the market more quickly.

Huang Keyi, a finance graduate from Jinan University, is hired for a first-class officer position in Fubao subdistrict office in Futian, the most popular of the five vacancies with 244 applications.

The 22-year-old said his family was supportive of his decision, especially his grandparents in Hong Kong. He added that his sister, who works in Hong Kong, is planning to find new jobs in Qianhai, a district in the Pearl River delta metropolitan region.

“I look forward to the day when I transform from a student to a civil servant,” Huang, who plans to stay in Shenzhen, said.

The two other Hongkongers who were hired graduated from the Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.

The four Hongkongers will have to pass a oneyear probation period before officially becoming civil servants.

Last year, three Hong Kong residents passed the 2020 civil service exam organized by the Guangdong human resources and social security department, becoming the first group of Hongkongers to fill official posts in Shenzhen.

On May 10, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor announced that Hong Kong would sign an exchange deal with Shenzhen and Guangdong governments to send more civil servants to work across the border in the Greater Bay Area.

Mainland officials can also take up posts in Hong Kong under the agreements.

Four Hongkongers to become Shenzhen civil servants