This undated photo shows Under Secretary for Education Jeff Sze Chun-fai. (PHOTO / HKSAR GOVERNMENT)

HONG KONG – Hong Kong is boosting its scholarship program for outstanding students from countries along the Belt and Road by increasing its quota by 50 percent starting this coming academic year.

The admission quota for the Belt & Road Scholarship will be increased to 150 starting academic year 2024-2025 to enhance its attractiveness to students and help develop the city into an international hub for post-secondary education.

Under Secretary for Education Jeff Sze Chun-fai said more than 430 students from 39 countries have benefited from the scholarship since its inception in 2016

Under Secretary for Education Jeff Sze Chun-fai said more than 430 students from 39 countries have benefited from the scholarship since its inception in 2016.

“It is ideal if we can attract students to study in our universities, so that while they are studying as a student they can explore around Hong Kong, they can learn more about this city and they can have internships during their study in Hong Kong,” Sze said.

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“After graduation, there is a higher chance that they will stay in Hong Kong and continue to be part of our talent pool,” he added.

Sze explained that the selection committee evaluates applicants based on four key criteria: Academic performance, communication and leadership skills, contributions to institutions and societies, and commitment to Hong Kong society.

Chia Xynn Yen from Malaysia, a second-year quantitative finance undergraduate at the University of Hong Kong, was awarded full funding for her studies through the Belt & Road Scholarship.

Chia said she was attracted to Hong Kong through the scholarship as well as the city’s reputation as an international financial hub. Last summer, she took up an investment analysis internship in Hong Kong.

Second-year quantitative finance undergraduate Chia Xynn Yen from Malaysia says she was attracted to Hong Kong through the Belt & Road Scholarship as well as the city's reputation as an international financial hub. (PHOTO / HKSAR GOVERNMENT)

“Hong Kong is a place where a lot of hedge funds and quantitative finance trading firms set up their office and it might be their only office in Asia as a whole,” she said.

“So I feel like this definitely provides a lot of jobs and opportunities for me and also a great career trajectory ahead,” she added.

Aybala Nisa Kesici from Türkiye, another beneficiary of the program, is in her third year of studying molecular biology and biotechnology at the University of Hong Kong, and is keen to pursue an academic career.

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She credits the scholarship with not only providing her with academic opportunities but enabling her to connect with students from diverse countries and backgrounds.