(25 November 2022, Hong Kong) Edvantage Group Holdings Limited (“Edvantage Group” or the “Group”, stock code: 0382.HK), the largest private business higher and vocational education group in the Greater Bay Area, announced its audited annual results of FY2022 for the 12 months ended 31 August 2022 (“Reporting Period”).
 
During the Reporting Period, the Group recorded stable growth in revenue and gross profit. Revenue was approximately RMB1,686.0 million, which has grown 34.7% as compared with the corresponding period of last year, which was mainly attributable to increase in number of students enrolled and average tuition fees from Huashang College, Huashang Vocational College, Urban Vocational College and Urban Technician College of the Group, the effective business development of the Group’s non-formal vocational education business, and the consolidation of the financial results of Urban Vocational College, Urban Technician College and Huashang Technical School since the respective completion of acquisition of them. The Group recorded a gross profit of approximately RMB849.5 million, representing an increase of 34.7% as compared with the corresponding period of last year, mainly attributable to the increase in the number of student enrolments and average tuition fees, as well as gross profit generated by Huashang Technical School, the newly acquired school during the Reporting Period.
 
Vocational Education Received National Support, the Group Laid the Groundwork
During the Reporting Period, the PRC government has launched a series of policies to support and encourage the development of vocational education. The Vocational Education Law of the People’s Republic of China, which was officially implemented on 1 May 2022, clearly stated for the first time that vocational education is of equal importance as general education, which indicates a clear development direction for private vocational schools and provides strong policy support. In September 2022, the executive meeting of the State Council of the PRC confirmed to support the purchase of equipment and renovation and transformation of colleges and universities, vocational colleges by means of policy-approved interest subsidies and special refinancing loans. The project refinancing loans announced amounted to over RMB200 billion, which will support the improvement of the comprehensive strength of vocational education institutions in the long run and help achieve the high-quality development of vocational education. The quantity and quality of students for the Group’s multi-level vocational education, as well as the development of its non-formal service business will have a very bright future.
 
Great Efforts in Cooperation between Industry and Schools, Worked with Industry Leader
The Group actively explores the integrated and synergistic education model across disciplines and fields, further deepening the cooperation between industry and schools and combined advantageous disciplines with industry leaders to implement the construction of industry colleges, strengthened cooperation in areas such as digital creativity and big health. In addition, the Group continued to strengthen the development path of “industry, teaching plus scientific research” by setting up research institutes, research centers and other institutions in related fields, and obtain provincial project support, tapping into cutting-edge fields such as digital economy and financial technology to support the cultivation of high-quality application-oriented talents.
 
Policies to Improve School Operations and Focus on Training Teachers
The "Implementation Plan for the Vocational School Standards Project" (職業學校辦學條件達標工程實施方案) was announced in November 2022, and the Group's strategy is consistent with the policy. The Group continued to focus on the teaching investment in practical training facilities and established a practical training system with “advanced equipment, reasonable layout and complete functions”. The laboratory building of Medicine & Health Science College of Huashang University and Huashang Simulation Hospital have been officially put into use, occupying an area of over 18,000 square metres to meet the growing demand for the development of healthcare-related disciplines, covering a variety of scenarios such as basic nursing, wards, operating rooms and midwifery rooms to simulate clinical teaching, strongly integrating teaching with clinical simulation practice and empowering the cultivation of practical talents of big health. The Group adheres to the strategy of “strengthening schools with talents” and the policy of “governance by renowned headmasters” to build a high-level teaching team. The Group has engaged a number of internationally renowned scholars and industry experts as school leaders or advisors.
 
Gratified by Students’ Prospects, Supported Education, Employment and Entrepreneurship
The Group actively invests resources to support students’ further studies, employment and entrepreneurship. In terms of further studies, the number of students of Huashang College who pursue further studies hits record high, with over one hundred students enrolled renowned domestic colleges and the top 100 overseas QS universities. In terms of employment, the initial employment rates of graduates of Huashang College, Huashang Vocational College and Urban Vocational College in the past three years were all above average, and the satisfaction rate of employers exceeded 98%. In terms of entrepreneurship, on the basis of building an innovation and entrepreneurship platform, the Group organised a number of innovation and entrepreneurship lectures and competitions and has trained hundreds of outstanding entrepreneurial graduates.
 
Fulfilled Corporate Social Responsibilities and Contributed on Various Levels
The Group has actively fulfilled its corporate social responsibilities and strived to enable the learning, exchange, internship, employment, and entrepreneurship of the young people in Hong Kong and Macau. The Group launched the “Edvantage Acceleration Program (EAP)” and “GBA Innovative Entrepreneurship Opportunities - 10 Talks of Huashang”, which supported the development of start-ups in the Greater Bay Area and cultivating innovative entrepreneurs with a global vision, respectively, in order to contribute to the construction of an international technology innovation centre in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. To incentivise students to continue improving their all-round qualities, the Group has set up over 50 on-campus scholarship programmes for students. To support rural revitalisation and common prosperity, the Group and its students actively carried out public welfare activities such as “poverty alleviation through e-commerce” and “student rural volunteerism”.

Future development
It is pointed out in the Report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of the PRC that China shall continue to thoroughly implement the strategy of developing the country through science and education and strengthen the country through talents. Deeply aware of the significance of nurturing talents for the benefit of the nation, the Group will adhere to the high-quality and high-compliance education in line with national policies, closely follow the market demand, deepen the development of vocational education, and actively cooperate with industry leaders to jointly establish talent training centres. The Group will also continue to implement its talent strategy, gather famous teachers and talents, continue to create a good teaching environment, and support the cultivation of high-quality talents. In addition, the Group will actively follow the Belt and Road Initiative, further implement the development strategy of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, promote the international development of vocational education, build a world-class international and differentiated school-running brand, and continuously provide high-quality talents for the society to achieve long-term high-quality and sustainable development of its business.