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Hong Kong to boost STEAM degrees as city targets two-way global education highway

Inaugural Global Education Summit, co-organised by the SCMP and HSBC Premier, brings together 5,000 policymakers, educators and parents

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(From left) Regina Yeung, head of Rewards, Partnerships & Premier, Retail Banking and Wealth, HSBC Hong Kong, Brian Hui, HSBC chief customer officer, SCMP publisher Tammy Tam, Secretary for Education Christine Choi, Janet Pang, managing director and head of Retail Business, Retail Banking and Wealth, Hong Kong, HSBC, SCMP executive editor Zuraidah Ibrahim, Angela Chan, HSBC Life Hong Kong chief distribution officer, and Ang Jin, chief growth officer at the SCMP, at the opening ceremony of the Global Education Summit 2026. Photo: Edmond So
(From left) Janet Pang, HSBC’s head of retail business, Secretary for Education Christine Choi and South China Morning Post publisher Tammy Tam at the Global Education Summit 2026. Photo: Edmond So
Education leaders and parents at the Global Education Summit, co-organised by SCMP Learn and HSBC Premier. Photo: Edmond So
(From left) SCMP publisher Tammy Tam, Professor Irwin King of Chinese University, Professor Yike Guo of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Professor Jay Siegel of the University of Hong Kong. Photo: Edmond So
Kelly Fung

The Hong Kong government will expand science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) education and allocate more land for higher education to transform the traditional study-abroad trend from a “one-way street into a two-way global highway”, the education chief has said.

Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin delivered the remarks on Saturday at the inaugural Global Education Summit, co-organised by the South China Morning Post and HSBC Premier.

“We have set a clear goal. By the 2026-27 academic year, 35 per cent of all undergraduate students at our government-funded universities will be enrolled in STEAM disciplines,” Choi said.

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Skills needed to outpace AI among topics discussed at Global Education Summit in Hong Kong

Saturday’s event brought together more than 5,000 policymakers, educators and parents from around the world to discuss regional talent development, artificial intelligence (AI) integration and evolving academic pathways.

Attendees at the two-day summit include principals and admissions officers from more than 40 leading secondary schools and universities, including the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford in the UK.

Elaborating on the targets, Choi noted that the drive to expand relevant degree programmes was matched by a broader effort to build the infrastructure needed to connect education, research and industry.

“To support this, in the 2025-28 triennium, our universities are launching 27 undergraduate programmes related to STEAM, including artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, creative industries, sustainable development and data science,” Choi told the summit at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong hotel in Wan Chai.

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