Strolling the markets of Hong Kong, I came across a stall dedicated to selling t-shirts bearing the slogan: “same same but different”. The stall’s popularity is just another one of the wonderful quirks of Hong Kong.
 
It is also a most perfect way of describing what I have observed about Hong Kong so far.
 
Dr Bryce Wilkinson and I are in Hong Kong to study and compare their welfare state and poverty alleviation policies.
 
To kick off our research we had a representative from the Hong Kong Council of Social Services show us around the poorest district in Hong Kong: Sham Shui Po.
 
The tour was a valuable way of seeing whether the academic literature matched the reality. My early impressions could be summed up on a t-shirt: much was the same, yet much was different.
 
First, the obvious: both Hong Kong and New Zealand suffer from seriously unaffordable housing markets due to under-supply. This has led to poor housing conditions at high costs.
 
Hong Kong and New Zealand also face the similarity that both welfare systems must balance providing immediate poverty alleviation, while adjusting for moral hazard. In New Zealand, child poverty is a major issue. In Hong Kong, it is the elderly.
 
Children lack the capacity and resources to care for themselves, while deteriorating health makes independence difficult for some elderly. Yet any government policy needs to balance support for the desperate, with longer term incentives to encourage responsible family planning and retirement savings.
 
The major difference, though, was the spirit or feel of the place. Sham Shui Po is not only Hong Kong’s poorest district, but a tourist attraction known for its markets and eateries. The crime rate is low, and the district is buzzing from the energy of commerce and employment.
 
Some of the poorest areas in New Zealand seem sapped of that hope and energy.
 
On an absolute basis, most reasonable people will recognise that poverty in New Zealand is not the same as in Africa or India. But it is also not the same as poverty in advanced economies like Hong Kong. There is a poverty of spirit that seems unique to New Zealand.
 
Of course, observing the current state of poverty is the easy part. Analysing why things are the way they are, what can be done to solve them, is much more complex.
 
And they probably cannot be nicely summed up on a t-shirt.

Jenesa Jeram and Dr Bryce Wilkinson are currently in Hong Kong undertaking research for their upcoming projects.