Hong Kong should replace Cantonese with Mandarin in schools in order to boost its competitiveness, the chief executive of one of the territory’s biggest companies said on Tuesday.
“We should really revamp our public education system. Our next generation has to be much more connected to China in terms of language and culture,” said Hui Kuok, chair and group chief executive of the Shangri-La luxury hotel group.
Kuok is the daughter of Robert Kuok, founder of the hotel group and Malaysia’s richest man.
“One way to do this could be over time to make Putonghua [Standard Mandarin] the main medium of instruction in schools,” she said, speaking at HSBC’s Global Investment Summit in Hong Kong.
“Another way could be for Hong Kong to invite some of the best public schools in China to open campuses here, just like we have done for international schools for decades.”
Mandarin is increasingly common in Hong Kong across trading floors and in business contexts as large numbers of mainland Chinese professionals arrive in the territory.