The variety of Hong Kong semi-private faculties making use of for a tuition charge enhance has dropped by greater than 1 / 4 in opposition to a 12 months in the past, with the sector attributing the decline partially to the sluggish economic system.
A spokesman for the Schooling Bureau mentioned on Friday that as of June it had acquired 40 purposes from faculties belonging to the direct subsidy scheme (DSS) to regulate tuition charges upwards, a 26 per cent lower from the 54 recorded final 12 months. The quantity has not been this low since 2022.
The variety of faculties notifying the bureau of an intent to freeze charges this September rose to 38, up from 25 final 12 months, marking a 52 per cent enhance.
Dion Chen, chairman of the Direct Subsidy Scheme Colleges Council, mentioned the sluggish economic system may very well be one cause for the faculties’ reluctance to boost charges.
“Like through the pandemic, a lot of the DSS faculties didn’t increase college charges. And DSS faculties would additionally examine whether or not they have such a necessity and adequate surplus earlier than making use of to boost the charges,” he mentioned.
About 470 preschools receiving subsidies and round 130 non-public ones have utilized for a charge enhance, marking a ten per cent drop from the 660 recorded final 12 months.
