A Hong Kong couple have paid HK$1 million (US$130,000) to get their daughter into a top school in a sign of the increasingly fierce and expensive competition for places, the Sunday Morning Post reported.
It said the parents forked out for a corporate debenture -- which is over and above the annual fees charged by the school -- to ensure she was given a place in a first-year primary class.
Many of Hong Kong's international schools are demanding that parents must buy a debenture, either through a company, which is more expensive, or personally. Only then, in some cases, will an application be examined.
They use the debenture, a deposit which is normally refunded when the child leaves, as a way of raising funds for development.
But as competition for places has intensified, debenture prices have risen sharply, leading to complaints that schools are becoming the preserve of the super-rich and deterring expatriates with families from moving to Hong Kong.
The Post said the girl was offered a place at Chinese International School after her parents paid for the debenture.
The school said its quoted price for corporate debentures was HK$600,000, but that parents could sell them on with permission.
The American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong says it believes thousands of children are on waiting lists for international schools.
Such schools are hugely popular because they offer teaching in English and are seen by many Chinese residents as meeting a higher standard of education.
A new online voting system aimed at boosting turnout among the Philippines’ millions of overseas workers ahead of Monday’s mid-term elections has been marked by confusion and fears of disenfranchisement. Thousands of overseas Filipino workers have already cast their ballots in the race dominated by a bitter feud between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and his impeached vice president, Sara Duterte. While official turnout figures are not yet publicly available, data from the Philippine Commission on Elections (COMELEC) showed that at least 134,000 of the 1.22 million registered overseas voters have signed up for the new online system, which opened on April 13. However,
EUROPEAN FUTURE? Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama says only he could secure EU membership, but challenges remain in dealing with corruption and a brain drain Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama seeks to win an unprecedented fourth term, pledging to finally take the country into the EU and turn it into a hot tourist destination with some help from the Trump family. The artist-turned-politician has been pitching Albania as a trendy coastal destination, which has helped to drive up tourism arrivals to a record 11 million last year. US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also joined in the rush, pledging to invest US$1.4 billion to turn a largely deserted island into a luxurious getaway. Rama is expected to win another term after yesterday’s vote. The vote would
ALLIES: Calling Putin his ‘old friend,’ Xi said Beijing stood alongside Russia ‘in the face of the international counter-current of unilateralism and hegemonic bullying’ Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday was in Moscow for a state visit ahead of the Kremlin’s grand Victory Day celebrations, as Ukraine accused Russia’s army of launching air strikes just hours into a supposed truce. More than 20 foreign leaders were in Russia to attend a vast military parade today marking 80 years since the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II, taking place three years into Russia’s offensive in Ukraine. Putin ordered troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and has marshaled the memory of Soviet victory against Nazi Germany to justify his campaign and rally society behind the offensive,
Myanmar’s junta chief met Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) for the first time since seizing power, state media reported yesterday, the highest-level meeting with a key ally for the internationally sanctioned military leader. Senior General Min Aung Hlaing led a military coup in 2021, overthrowing Myanmar’s brief experiment with democracy and plunging the nation into civil war. In the four years since, his armed forces have battled dozens of ethnic armed groups and rebel militias — some with close links to China — opposed to its rule. The conflict has seen Min Aung Hlaing draw condemnation from rights groups and pursued by the
RSS