EDUCATION
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The annual employment survey of full-time course graduates again showed that they had little difficulty in finding employment in their respective disciplines after completion of their studies. A computer centre at the Lee Wai Lee Technical Institute, with terminals linking all five institutes, enables the study of computer applications to be included in most courses. Computer facilities in each technical institute are also being improved and expanded.
In order to meet increasing demand for courses, an expansion programme has been undertaken. Phase II of the Lee Wai Lee Technical Institute was completed in December 1983 and became fully operational in January 1984. Work on an annexe to the Haking Wong Technical Institute was due for completion in February 1985.
Three more technical institutes are being planned at Tuen Mun and Sha Tin for 1986 and at Chai Wan for 1987.
Industrial Training
Construction of the Vocational Training Council's nine-storey Kowloon Bay Training Centre Complex was completed in November. The 10-storey Kwai Chung Training Centre Complex is under construction and should be completed by mid-1985. The complex at Kowloon Bay-houses five training centres for the electronics, hotel, machine shop and metal working, plastics, and printing industries. The complex at Kwai Chung also has five training centres for the automobile, electrical, electronics, machine shop and metal working (including welding), and textiles industries. These training centres will have the capacity to provide basic off-the-job training for about 9 000 trainees a year, ranging from operative to technologist level. The Kowloon Bay complex has started offering one-year full-time courses: short courses will commence in early 1985.
The Seamen's Training Temporary Centre at Little Sai Wan started operation in February. The centre provides 30-day residential training programmes to Hong Kong seamen to enable them to obtain the necessary certificates required under the Interna- tional Maritime Organisation's Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers 1978. In 1984, the centre provided training for about 800 local seamen.
The Engineering Graduate Training Scheme was launched by the Vocational Training Council in February 1983 to provide 18-month practical training to enable engineering graduates to become qualified professional engineers. In 1984, 60 firms with 200 trainee- engineers participated in the scheme.
The Management Development Centre of Hong Kong started operation in October to undertake research, development, co-ordination and promotion of management training in Hong Kong.
Apart from industrial apprenticeship schemes, commercial traineeship schemes were also introduced to the accountancy and insurance sectors. The Training Course Subsidy Schemes operated by the Vocational Training Council were popular with the journalism sector and the wholesale/retail and import/export trades.
Training Authorities
The Clothing Industry Training Authority and the Construction Industry Training Authority are statutory bodies set up in 1975 to establish and operate training centres for the two industries. The former collects a training levy based on the export value of clothing items and the latter collects a levy based on the value of construction works exceeding $0.25 million. Two construction industry training centres are already in operation and a third is being planned. A second clothing industry training centre started operation in mid-1984.