The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) commended 60 schools for taking part in the Racially Friendly Campus Recognition Scheme and promoting racial equality at a recognition ceremony today (7 July 2023). The scheme, which was launched for the first time this March to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and ran for two months, encouraged schools to promote racial inclusion and diversity on their campuses through student activities and publicity campaigns.

To celebrate their achievements, participating schools were presented with trophies and were recognised as Racially Friendly Campus Champions today. The ceremony also featured fireside chats with representatives of three schools which demonstrated exceptional creativity in their activities to promote racial inclusion. The representatives expressed appreciation for the scheme and said they hope it can continue to enable more schools and students to participate.

Speaking at the event, EOC Chairperson Mr Ricky CHU Man-kin said, “Ideas of fairness, equality and inclusion can be learnt from a young age, but so can biases and prejudices. Accordingly, schools and teachers have the responsibility to instil positive values and principles in their students, as the lessons they teach will continue to affect the next generation even when they become adults. Through the Racially Friendly Campus Recognition Scheme, the EOC aims to encourage schools to actively engage students on questions around racial diversity and inclusion. The response to the scheme, both in terms of the number of participating schools, as well as the diversity of the initiatives, has been very positive, further highlighting the importance of this topic for young people. We hope this year’s Racially Friendly Campus Champions will continue to promote the message of racial equality and we look forward to working with more schools in the future to help them nurture open-minded citizens who fully embrace the values of culturally diversity and inclusion.”

Building on this year’s success, the scheme will expand its scope next year. In addition to fostering mutual respect and acceptance among people of different racial backgrounds, it will also promote inclusion of people from different regional cultures and places of origin, such as new immigrants to Hong Kong. As the number of overseas and Mainland talents in Hong Kong continues to grow, the EOC believes that improving education on racial inclusivity in schools will create a friendlier environment for newcomers while better preparing the younger generation to thrive in an increasingly diverse society. The EOC hopes that the Racially Friendly Campus Champions of the inaugural scheme will help promote the initiative and encourage more schools to join the scheme in the 2023/24 school year.

__________________________________________

Equal Opportunities Commission
7 July 2023

The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) today (7 July 2023) held the Recognition Ceremony of the “Racially Friendly Campus Recognition Scheme” to commend 60 schools for taking part in the Scheme. Photo shows EOC Chairperson Mr Ricky CHU Man-kin (first row, sixth from left); EOC Members Dr Sigmund LEUNG Sai-man (first row, fourth from left), Miss Lily CHOW (first row, fifth from left), Mr Simon LAM ken-chung (first row, second from right), Ms Queenie CHAN Lai-kwan (first row, third from right) and Dr Rizwan ULLAH (first row, fourth from right), as well as representatives of the participating schools.