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The Secretary for Education (SED), Mr Eddie Ng Hak-kim, today (December 16) commenced his duty visit to Indonesia to promote educational co-operation and exchange between Hong Kong and member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Mr Ng visited Universitas Pelita Harapan, where he toured the university campus and met with its management to exchange views on co-operation opportunities in tertiary education between Indonesia and Hong Kong as a regional education hub.
"There are currently five exchange agreements and two research collaborations between the eight University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded institutions in Hong Kong and their counterparts in Indonesia," Mr Ng said.
"In 2012/13, there were 175 Indonesian students studying in UGC-funded programmes. However, student exchange activities between Hong Kong and Indonesia were not very active in the past and there is still room for further development."
He encouraged the university sector in Indonesia to send their students to Hong Kong for further education and exchange activities.
One successful example of student exchange activities is a cross-country study tour organised by the Po Leung Kuk (PLK). Some 100 teachers and students from PLK secondary schools are currently visiting Jakarta, following their first leg in Shanghai in June this year.
On the invitation of the PLK, Mr Ng today joined their exchange activities at SMA Negeri 8 - a public high school in Jakarta - to give support and encouragement to the participating teachers and students.
"Indonesia is the largest economic entity in Southeast Asia, while Shanghai is one of the leading cities on the Mainland. The cross-country study tour can provide the participating students with first-hand information and experience to compare the situation and competitive edge of Hong Kong with those of Jakarta and Shanghai from multiple perspectives," Mr Ng said.
Mr Ng told the students to treasure the life-wide learning opportunity to broaden their horizons and understand better the latest developments in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Jakarta. It would be conducive to their personal development and their role as good global citizens, he said.
Mr Ng also encouraged schools in the three places to maintain close partnerships in the future. He was pleased to learn that PLK schools are considering establishing a sister school relationship with SMA Negeri 8 following the study tour.
Tonight Mr Ng will meet and brief a group of local community leaders from Hong Kong on the latest developments of education and other issues in Hong Kong.
Officials accompanying Mr Ng to visit Indonesia include the Administrative Assistant to the SED, Mr Kenneth Cheng, and the Chief Curriculum Development Officer (Personal, Social and Humanities Education), Mr Lee Chi-hung.
Ends/Monday, December 16, 2013
Issued at HKT 18:30
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