Education minister Christine Choi on Sunday said more overseas academics have been coming to the SAR to conduct research, and that Hong Kong universities are also hiring "top-notch" scholars from the mainland.

Choi noted that foreign academics enjoy the stable research environment at local tertiary institutions, saying they receive a steady amount of funding from the government.

Speaking on a TVB programme, she pointed out that there are now more mainland scholars teaching at local universities than in the past, after the show's host noted that the ratio of mainland scholars had exceeded 40 percent.

Choi explained that the nation boasts top-notch talent in areas like artificial intelligence and that it is natural that Hong Kong universities are hiring them.

"Because our nation has a master plan to build a leading education sector, I believe on the mainland, universities are also fighting for scholars, they also need top-notch academics to stay there."

And because of this, she thinks institutions in Hong Kong will not be able to attract an even larger number of mainland academics.

"Basically, roughly a third would be local scholars, a third overseas, and the final third will be from the mainland over the next decade," she said.

Choi was also asked if academic exchanges had been affected by the geopolitical situation.

She responded by saying that Hong Kong's education is diversified and not weighted towards any countries or regions, adding that the political situation and tariff war has not affected exchanges with the United States and Europe so far.