The Government announced today (September 17) that three sites in the Hung Shui Kiu (HSK) University Town campus area are being rolled out for application by eligible post-secondary institutions, and loan arrangements will be provided to support their campus construction. The plan is to drive the Northern Metropolis (NM) development with university towns, fostering the integrated development of education, technology and talent, further supporting post-secondary education to expand capacity and enhance quality. The initiative also helps consolidate Hong Kong's position as an international education hub.
 
     The Chief Executive announced in the First Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (2026-2030) and the Chief Executive's 2026 Policy Address that the Government will develop the San Tin (ST), HSK and Ta Kwu Ling (TKL) University Towns in the NM, based on the concept of town area. Each university town comprises a campus area, a technology area, an industry area and a living community area, and is planned around a "One Town, Five Elements" (education, technology, industry, talent and urban development) concept to drive the overall development of the Northern Metropolis University Town (NMUT).
 
        The HSK University Town is located in the Hung Shui Kiu/Ha Tsuen New Development Area. Its campus area and adjoining technology and industry areas, including the Hung Shui Kiu Industry Park, the Lau Fau Shan Digital Technology Hub, the Yuen Long InnoPark and the Hong Kong Microelectronics Research and Development Institute, will be developed as a Centre for Applied Post-secondary Education in Smart Manufacturing and Global Talent Cultivation. The Government is rolling out three campus area sites with a total area of around 26 hectares: Area (1) of approximately 16.5 hectares, Area (2) of approximately 5.3 hectares and Area (3) of approximately 4.4 hectares. For the details of the three sites, vetting and loan arrangements, and required application materials, please refer to the Guidance Notes at www.edb.gov.hk/en/edu-system/postsecondary/policy-doc/nmuthsk/index.html. The application deadline is December 31, 2026.
 
     To facilitate holistic consolidation and development planning of the university towns, a Designated Vetting Group led by the Chief Secretary for Administration, will be set up. The vetting group will be responsible for reviewing the proposals submitted by institutions, and approving and deciding on campus area sites and loan proposals (if applicable). Subsequently, the Government will grant the sites to successful institutions at a nominal land premium by way of private treaty grants, and the relevant loan proposals will be submitted to the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council for approval according to the established procedures.
 
     The campus areas of the three university towns in ST, HSK and TKL amount to about 300 hectares. Together with the surrounding technology areas, industry areas and living community areas, the overall planned areas will exceed 1 000 hectares. The Government encourages interested institutions to plan their development in the NMUT more comprehensively according to the positioning and functions of different university towns to give full play to the vision of empowering the development of the NM through teaching and research.
 
     The Government will continue to communicate closely with the post-secondary education sector, focusing on the deep integration of industry development with advantaged academic fields, and actively exploring strategies to attract top universities and research institutes from around the world to establish presence, leveraging the unique advantages of the "one country, two systems" principle, attracting high-end talent and creating high-quality university towns that are suitable for education, research, innovation and living, as well as proactively aligning with national development strategies and seizing the major opportunities brought about by the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, thereby further promoting Hong Kong's integration into and service of the overall national development.

Ends/Thursday, September 17, 2026
Issued at HKT 17:05

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