A Hong Kong government task force dedicated to making public schools sustainable will help primary schools with low enrollments to join, the city’s education chief has said. It comes as 15 risk of closure in the next academic year due to insufficient student intake.
Speaking on a TVB program on Sunday, Education Secretary Christine Choi said the number of students in Hong Kong has fallen sharply in the past decade, while the number of schools has remained roughly the same.
“The number of school-aged children has fallen by 60,000 to 70,000 in the past decade. During the same period, we saw the closure of only two primary schools,” she said in Cantonese.
Her comments came after the government said this 15 primary schools in 10 districts failed to enroll at least 16 students required to open Primary One classes. These schools have been encouraged to consider merging.
‘Sustainable learning environment’
Choi said on Sunday that since over half of those schools were not supported by a sponsoring body, the government has been considering how to encourage more established schools to join them.
Mergers should be aimed at improving the quality of education rather than just preserving schools, she said, adding that the authorities will assess whether two “weak schools” – those that have operated only one Primary One class in recent years – can be merged.
“It will depend on whether the merger can provide a stable and sustainable learning environment for students,” she said.
But Choi said the current administration will not adjust the minimum student admission requirements for elementary schools, adding that the government has formulated a “five-year plan” that could study the long-term trend of a declining population.
She also said the government had no plans to ease restrictions on the admission of non-local students, as authorities do not expect a large influx of foreign students into the city in the foreseeable future.
The Eastern District is the hardest hit, with four schools.
Under a POLICY introduced last year, all aided schools can apply to join other schools.
If the Bureau of Education approves the merger of the two schools, the new school may enjoy a one-time exemption from the minimum enrollment in Primary One during the three-year transition period. But if the school cannot accept 16 more students after that, it will have to close or go private.
Hong Kong has seen an aging population and a record low number of newborn babies.
Citing government statistics, local media reported in January that there were only 31,714 newborn babies registered in 2025 – a record low in the city’s history.
