Suicide among children and teens hit ten-year high last year, but overall figures decline – NGO

The suicide rate among Hong Kong children and teens hit a 10-year high last year, an NGO has said, as it urged the government to expand its existing suicide prevention mechanism for students. Hongkongers walk in rain in July 2026 . Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. The Samaritan Befrienders Hong Kong (SBHK) said at a Thursday press conference that Hong Kong saw 1,019 suicide cases in 2025, citing figures from the Coroner’s Court. The overall suicide rate dropped from 15.1 per 100,000 people in 2024 to 13.57 – the lowest rate since 2020, SBHK said. However, cases among those aged 0 to 19 surged to 47 last year – a 30 per cent increase compared to 2024 figures. It means that the city saw a suicide rate of 4.72 per 100,000 among children and teens – the highest in a decade. 228 crisis cases in 2025 The suicide prevention group saw 228 crisis cases among children and teens in 2025. Of those, males outnumbered females by two to one. The primary issues cited by the cases involved family (29.4 per cent), mental health (20.2 per cent), and interpersonal relationships (17.1 per cent). ASamaritan Befrienders Hong Kong banner. File photo: Samaritan Befrienders Hong Kong. David Cheng, chief executive of SBHK, said at the press conference that the NGO would strengthen its services for family and youth in the future. He also urged the government to include suicide prevention NGOs such as SBHK in the “Three-tier School-based Emergency Mechanism” to provide better support for children and youth at risk of suicide. The Hong Kong government introduced a mechanism in late 2023 at local schools to assist with the early identification of students with mental health issues. Appropriate referrals can then be made for affected students. Suicide among elderly people 💡If you are in need of support, please call: The Samaritans 2896 0000 (24-hour, multilingual), Suicide Prevention Centre 2382 0000 or the gov’t mental health hotline on 18111. The Hong Kong Society of Counselling and Psychology provides a WhatsApp hotline in English and Chinese: 6218 1084. See also: HKFP’s mental health services guide. In 2025, a total of 257 suicides were recorded among elderly people aged 70 or above, representing a suicide rate of 21.1 per 100,000 people, SBHK said. While the elderly suicide rate saw the lowest level in nearly a decade, the group still accounts for the highest number of deaths among all age groups. The NGO said that Hong Kong’s overall suicide rate of 13.57 remains above the international average, urging people to pay attention to the emotions of people around them, and provide support. According to a World Health Organization report published in 2025, the global age-standardised suicide rate is 8.9 per 100,000 people. Safeguard press freedom; keep HKFP free for all readers by supporting our team Support HKFP | Policies & Ethics | Error/typo? | Contact | Newsletter | Transparency & Annual Report | Apps Make a one-off donation. Irene Chan is a reporter at Hong Kong Free Press and has an interest in covering political and social change. She previously worked at Initium Media as chief editor for Hong Kong news and was a community organiser at the Society for Community Organisation serving the underprivileged. She has a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Fudan University and a master’s degree in social work from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Irene is the recipient of two Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) awards and three honourable mentions for her investigative, feature and video reporting. She also received a Human Rights Press Award for multimedia reporting and an honourable mention for feature writing. More by Irene Chan