In Hong Kong, every resident has a Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) account to safeguard their golden years so that the social and economic (of course) burden on the government is not that taxing. The MPF is important, especially in an aging society with a birth rate that is below its replacement level. In Hong Kong, every working adult has to contribute 5% of their monthly basic salary to their MPF account. The other 5% will be contributed by the Hong Kong government. As a foreigner working in Hong Kong, I was told that unless I am contributing to a similar scheme in my home country, i.e. CPF, I will need to have a Hong Kong MPF account. This is the Hong Kong government's way of safeguarding the future for residents.
The interesting part is when I leave Hong Kong for good, well, that comes with after declaring that I will NEVER EVER work in Hong Kong again for a prolonged period of time and filling in piles and piles of forms (according to the school secretary), I will not get back all the money meant for my retirement in this MPF account. The Hong Kong government will retain a token sum as, well, I have no idea what it is for, but I guess, hmmm...administrative charges of a few tens of thousands of HKD, perhaps?
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