Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited (SHKP) has been promoting a love for reading among young people through its SHKP Reading Club. The Group has also introduced STEM and Chinese culture as key themes to enrich the reading experience and inspire innovation. Recently, SHKP Executive Director Christopher Kwok visited the Shamshuipo Kaifong Welfare Association Primary School as one of the SHKP Reading Club activities. He shared his reading journey and recommended books on STEM and Chinese culture to over 70 senior primary students.

Mr Kwok said that SHKP sponsored 2,000 students to visit this year’s Hong Kong Book Fair and buy books on STEM and Chinese culture. Among them, 800 children were from Sham Shui Po or other less affluent districts. He was glad to have a chance to listen to the students’ opinions on the books. He hoped that the students would explore more about Hong Kong and the mainland through reading, and gain a deeper understanding of the rich Chinese culture and history, as well as general science.

Also attending the sharing session were Paul Wong, Sham Shui Po District Officer, and Lam Tak-hing, Chairman of Sham Shui Po Residents Association. 

Paul Wong said: “We can find almost any information we need on the Internet these days.  But there is still nothing like reading a physical book.  Many people try to find an answer to the questions they have in mind by consulting a book.  Yet each time you open a book, there are new problems, perspectives and information.  And you develop new curiosities and get new puzzles. This is actually what is fun about reading and what will drive our kids to explore a new world.”

Mr Kwok added: “No matter how busy I am at work, I will manage my time properly and allocate time for reading every day to broaden my horizons.”

Through its Read to Dream programme, the Group has encouraged young people to cultivate a love of reading and make it a habit. Since its inception, the programme has benefitted more than 30,000 primary and secondary school students. In support of the Group’s I&T business development and the government’s promotion of I&T education, the programme has organized STEM activities in recent years to help unleash potential of the young generation. 

In July, the Group collaborated with its long-term partner the Hong Kong Trade Development Council to sponsor 2,000 students to visit the Hong Kong Book Fair. It also worked with Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers, the North District Primary School Headmasters Conference and the Sham Shui Po Residents Association to arrange for 800 underprivileged students to buy Chinese culture and STEM books at the fair. Many of them bought their favourite books.