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Led by the Secretary for Education (SED), Mr Eddie Ng Hak-kim, a Hong Kong delegation visiting Toronto, Canada, today (March 12, Toronto time) will meet with the Council of Ontario Universities and university presidents to exchange views on the development of higher education in the two places.
Earlier on Mr Ng met with the Ontario Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, Mr Brad Duguid, to exchange views on government policies, including higher education and manpower training.
The delegates then visited the University of Waterloo (UW). UW is renowned for building bridges with industries from quantum computing and nanotechnology to clinical psychology, engineering and health sciences research.
They toured the UW campus, including Co-operative Education & Career Action, and also had an in-depth exchange with the management and students of the university.
In UW, students have opportunities to mix their studies with work terms for which they are actively sought by employers, including many in Silicon Valley. To the north of its campus, the university also runs an office park, leasing space to technology companies including BlackBerry and Cisco.
Mr Ng said that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government has all along attached great importance to research and development work.
"Nowadays one-fourth of the recurrent grants provided by the University Grants Committee (UGC) for UGC-funded institutions are earmarked for research purposes. In addition, we also set up a HK$18 billion Research Endowment Fund in 2009, followed by a HK$5 billion injection in 2012/13, with a view to enhancing academic and research development," he added.
"The HKSAR Government recognises that if we can transform technology research outcomes into products with market potential, coupled with industrial production, our technological development can make an even greater contribution to Hong Kong's economy.
"In this connection, the Budget announced last month has proposed that the six universities with technology transfer offices be each provided with a subvention of up to HK$12 million through the Innovation and Technology Fund for a period of three years to facilitate technology transfer and the realisation of research and development results."
The delegates also met with the Toronto District School Board to exchange views on how the education system could respond to the needs of the fast-changing world, including the challenge of falling birth rates. They were briefed by the Chief Academic Officer, Ms Gen Ling Chang, on the local school education system.
On the HKSAR Government's suggestion to inject an additional HK$480 million into the HKSAR Government Scholarship Fund to set up scholarships for outstanding students to take degree courses or teacher training programmes in prestigious universities outside Hong Kong and then come back to teach, Ms Chang described it as amazing.
"The initiative can attract highly qualified people to join the teaching profession for the benefit of students," she said.
In the meantime, Mr Ng took the opportunity in Toronto to meet with Chinese community leaders and education professionals from Hong Kong.
Other members of the delegation include the Deputy Secretary for Education, Dr Catherine K K Chan, the Administrative Assistant to the SED, Mr Kenneth Cheng, and the Secretary General of the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority, Dr Tong Chong-sze.
Ends/Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Issued at HKT 12:00
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