8
16.
broaden the knowledge of our staff of the main service departments. This has been achieved through lectures and discussions at a central level and through attending meetings and working together with departmental representatives at district level on a wide variety of projects.
17.
I must confess though that C.D.O. staff have so far only had limited success in achieving the objective stated in the Directive
"to assess the adequacy of existing
services
We have however done some work to
and the needs of the
district and recommend an expansion or change of emphasis in existing services or the introduction of new
services to meet local needs".
The reason for the lack of success in this field is that Liaison Officers generally have not had any broader view point from which to observe present services than their own experience of Hong Kong conditions and their limited first- hand experience of the work of other departments.
18.
I regard the development of powers of observation and critical analysis as essential to the success of the C.D.O. scheme and this is why I have recommended that some of the staff should be sent on a group tour of a neighbouring territory with similar social and economic problems. This is not a luxury. It is an integral part of fitting men and women for a testing job which in many other societies would be undertaken by politicians of the party in office. Our officers have the vocation but need the broader perspective. The cost of a few weeks in Malaysia and Singapore is not high and the experience would be much more relevant than that which would be gained by sending a smaller number of officers to England at the
/same