HKIA unveils 'EXTRA MILE' to improve social mobility and growth of Hong Kong

December 17, 2018: In a strategic move to develop talents, improve social mobility and drive the development in Hong Kong, the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) recently launched EXTRA MILE-a community investment project.

According to reports, EXTRA MILE has been spearheaded by the Airport Authority Hong Kong (AA) in collaboration with HKIA's business partners, NGOs and neighbouring communities.

According to Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, chief secretary for administration of the Hong Kong special administrative region government said that many successful corporations like the AA are responsive to social needs while developing their business.

Recently, enterprises and organisations in the public and private sectors alike are actively embracing the concept of %u2018creating shared values'. This innovative business strategy is different from charity and corporate social responsibility. It encourages enterprises to make good use of the available resources, technology and experiences to spark innovation which can not only generate returns but also bring improvements to the economy, environment and people's lives, creating values for both the enterprise and the community.

Noting the success of the EXTRA MILE project, Cheung commended it for having set a good model of cross-sectoral creation of shared values for other professionals and companies.

Fred Lam, chief executive officer of the AA said: “The aviation industry is closely related to Hong Kong's development. As a member of the industry, AA has been fulfilling its social obligations and responsibilities, and at the same time, striving to promote social development. AA shares the same beliefs as the Hong Kong SAR government in respect to creating shared value, and formulated a community investment vision in 2015 to meet the challenges and opportunities brought by the growth of airport business. We conducted feasibility studies afterwards and initiated the EXTRA MILE project. We are glad that there are 15 business partners participating in the first year of the project, marking a good start. With the continued involvement of our business and community partners, we hope that the EXTRA MILE project will develop and expand gradually - not only to meet the challenges of the airport community, but also to benefit more stakeholders and live up to the spirit of creating shared value.”

EXTRA MILE is an innovative, multi-year community investment project. With SVhk as its project advisor, it includes three pilot programmes-Working Holiday@Lantau, Pioneer and EduCare.

Working Holiday@Lantau is one-year work placement programme for working youth, implemented in collaboration with HKFYG. It also includes exploratory programmes, such as volunteering activities and community exploration; and provides free accommodation and learning subsidies to help participants explore their directions in life.

The Pioneer is a one-year work placement programme at HKIA for non-Chinese speakers (NCS) with leadership potential, executed in collaboration with HKSKHLMC. It also offers cultural inclusion workshops and activities for participating business partners. Through the programme, the AA hopes to cultivate a culturally inclusive working environment and attract more NCS to join the airport workforce, while nurturing them to become team leaders who may act as a bridge between local supervisors and NCS employees.

EduCare is an after-school care programme for students whose parents work at HKIA, implemented in collaboration with Playtao. Apart from providing tutorial services and exposure activities to facilitate the all-round development of participants, the programme also offers parenting workshops aimed at alleviating the burden of parents, especially working mothers in Tung Chung, in taking care of their children. It aims to assist airport staff in establishing healthier family relationships, while developing the full potential of the latent female labour force.