XN000022-1978-07-20 — Page 5

THURSDAY, JULY 20, 1978

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SUMMER YOUTH PROGRAMME IN TAI PO BEGINS

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THE RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF TAI PO IS NOT CONFINED TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF PUBLIC WORKS BUT ALSO INVOLVES COMMUNITY ACTIVITY AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT, THE SECRETARY FOR THE NEW TERRITORIES, MR. DAVID AKERS-JONES, SAID TODAY (THURSDAY).

SPEAKING AT THE OFFICIAL OPENING CEREMONY OF THE TAI PO SIX DISTRICTS SUMMER YOUTH PROGRAMME, MR. AKERS-JONES POINTED OUT THAT IN THE PAST YEAR THE RAPID PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT OF TAI PO DISTRICT HAS CONTINUED AS PART OF THE GOVERNMENT'S $2,400 MILLION PLAN TO DEVELOP TAI PO AND FAN LING/SHEUNG SHUI AS MODERN, SELF-CONTAINED COMMUNITIES WITH AN EVENTUAL POPULATION OF NEARLY 400,000,

HE ALSO NOTED THAT THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF OUR YOUNG PEOPLE TO DEVELOP THEIR INTERESTS AND POTENTIAL IS AN IMPORTANT ELEMENT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.

+THE 1978 SUMMER YOUTH PROGRAMME MAKES A SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTION TO THE FULFILMENT OF THIS PURPOSE, HE SAID.

MR. AKERS-JONES AND THE TAI PO DISTRICT OFFICER, MR. CLIVE OXLEY, THEN PERFORMED A RIBBON-CUTTING CEREMONY AT THE SHENG KUNG HUI BISHOP MOK SAU TSENG SCHOOL IN TAI PO MARKET TO OFFICIALLY OPEN THIS YEAR'S SUMMER YOUTH PROGRAMME IN TAJ PO.

THIS WAS FOLLOWED BY A CHILDREN'S GAMES COMPETITION PARTICIPATED BY MORE THAN 1,500 LOCAL CHILDREN.

MORE THAN 40,000 STUDENTS AND YOUNG PEOPLE FROM THE SIX DISTRICTS, NAMELY TAI PO, FAN LING, SHEUNG SHUI, TA KWU LING, SHA TAU KOK AND SAI KUNG (NORTH), WILL TAKE PART IN THIS YEAR'S PROGRAMME WHICH RUNS UNTIL MID-SEPTEMBER.

THE PROGRAMME INCLUDES ALL FORMS OF SPORTS, ATHLETICS AND GYMNASTICS MEETINGS, SWIMMING AND CANOEING, GAMES AND FUN FAIRS, CAMPING AND OUTINGS, MUSIC AND DANCING CLASSES AND COMMUNITY SERVICE ACTIVITIES.

A TOTAL OF 1,200 YOUNG VOLUNTEERS HAVE BEEN TRAINED TO ASSIST IN THE PLANNING AND ORGANISATION OF THE PROGRAMME IN TAI PO.

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