Culture as economic policy

A Hong Kong opinion writer says the city’s economic future depends less on headline art fairs and more on funding the people who make culture year-round. (scmp.com) Carolyn Yim wrote in the South China Morning Post on April 12, 2026, that Hong Kong has strong capital markets and a growing family-office business, but weaker “cultural infrastructure” for attracting talent, tourists, and returning diaspora. She argued the city should move from hosting events to “consistently” producing culture. (scmp.com) Her target is Hong Kong’s event-led strategy. Art Basel Hong Kong 2025 drew 91,000 visitors and 240 galleries from 42 countries and territories, while the 2025-26 budget said the government would keep backing large arts events through the Mega Arts and Cultural Events Fund. (artbasel.com) (budget.gov.hk) The same budget also framed culture as industry policy, not only tourism policy. Financial Secretary Paul Chan said more than 780 projects had been approved under the CreateSmart Initiative with about HK$3.4 billion in funding, benefiting more than 30,000 small and medium-sized enterprises. (budget.gov.hk) Government policy still leans heavily toward visitor spending. The budget allocated HK$1.235 billion to the Hong Kong Tourism Board for 2025-26, and the board said it had signed a three-year global partnership with Art Basel to promote Hong Kong at all four annual fairs worldwide. (news.gov.hk) (discoverhongkong.com) Yim’s argument is that this approach misses the base of the pyramid: rehearsal rooms, small venues, mentoring, and multi-year backing for local creators. She pointed to the British Fashion Council’s NEWGEN program as a model because it gives designers up to three years of support instead of a single burst of exposure. (scmp.com) She also tied that case to specific neighborhoods and scenes, citing daytime discos in Prince Edward warehouses, zine fairs in Chungking Mansions, techno events in Kwun Tong, and art shows in Tai Ping Shan. Her point was that subcultures form before they become commercial products. (scmp.com) Hong Kong already has large cultural anchors to build around. West Kowloon Cultural District reported more than 17 million visits in 2025, while M+ logged more than 2.6 million visits and the Hong Kong Palace Museum recorded about 1 million. (thestandard.com.hk) (webmedia.westkowloon.hk) The wider economy gives the debate more urgency. Hong Kong’s gross domestic product grew 2.5% in 2024, and the government’s statistics office said services sectors remained the main driver of output. (censtatd.gov.hk) Official creative-industry data are still being updated, but the Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency says it had approved 1,400 projects with HK$4.8 billion committed as of the end of December 2025. The agency also posted fresh releases on value added, employment, establishments, and trade on March 31, 2026. (ccidahk.gov.hk) The split in Hong Kong’s policy debate is not whether culture matters. It is whether the city should keep measuring culture by visitor counts and mega-events, or by how many local artists, designers, filmmakers, and venues can still afford to stay and work there. (scmp.com) (budget.gov.hk)