Hong Kong has ‘soft landing’ approach to deal with shrinking student population, John Lee says while voicing confidence some who left city will return
- Chief executive says authorities will monitor trend and formulate policies accordingly
- City lost 64,109 students over the past two academic years, according to statistics analysed by the Post
Hong Kong’s leader on Tuesday gave his assurance that authorities would deal with the city’s shrinking student population using a “soft landing” approach in policymaking, as he voiced confidence the financial hub boasted “good attractions and reasons” for residents to return despite an emigration wave.
Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu called the decline in student numbers a “long-term trend”, after official statistics showed the city had lost 33,604 people in this demographic between September 2021 and September 2022. The net loss in student tally was 10 per cent higher compared with the previous 12-month period.
“That’s a long-term trend, I think, looking at the statistics. It’s not just a temporary situation,” Lee told reporters at a weekly morning briefing.
“The Education Bureau has been doing a lot to ensure a soft landing in all regards, so there will be a smooth transition and changes that will handle the drop in the overall student population,” he said.
Authorities would work hand in hand with the education sector to guarantee that “things will work out smoothly”, Lee added.
The city leader also said Hong Kong had seen a long-standing pattern of people “going in and out”. He expressed confidence that the full lifting of pandemic restrictions would bring many residents back.
Hong Kong schools lose 33,600 to emigration, but officials remain optimistic
“As we have now resumed normal travel with mainland China and are also fully connected with the world, there will be a lot of people thinking of settling in Hong Kong,” Lee argued. “If they have for various reasons left Hong Kong, there will be good attractions and good reasons for them to come back.”
He added that the government would monitor population shifts and plan policies accordingly.
Student departures during academic year ease at some elite Hong Kong schools
Lee had previously set out the so-called soft landing approach to address the falling demand for school spaces in his maiden policy address last October.
Education minister Christine Choi Yuk-lin last month rejected the sector’s calls to trim class sizes in secondary schools to prevent more campuses from closing, saying there was no proof students would benefit.
The local education system lost 64,109 students over the past two academic years, according to statistics analysed by the Post. The trend gained momentum in early 2021.
Among them, 11,640 were from kindergartens, 22,611 from primary schools and 29,858 from secondary institutions.
The total number of pupils studying locally from Kindergarten One to Form Six was 828,600 in the last academic year. The figure dropped to about 796,000 in the current year, shrinking by 4 per cent, off the back of the emigration wave and the city’s low birth rate.
