XN000022-1979-09-17 — Page 10

PR 13

K 香港政府

H

GIS

新聞處

DAILY INFORMATION BULLETIN

SUPPLEMENT

SPEECH BY HE THE GOVERNOR AT THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

OF THE CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR INSTITUTE

ON MONDAY, 17 SEPTOLBER, 1979

I am delighted to be here today to officiate at the opening of the International Conference of the Clothing and Footwear Institute.

The clothing industry is the largest sector of Hong Kong's manufacturing industry both in terms of employment and value of exports, having some 10 000 establishments and employing some 276 000 workers which represents 34 per cent of Hong Kong's total workforce in the manufacturing industry. Despite the barriers posed by increasing protectionism from developed importing countries and competition from neighbouring countries, Hong Kong's clothing industry has grown steadily since the 1950s until it is now the world's largest exporter. The value of domestic exports of clothing for the first six months of this year amounted to over HK$8 600 million representing about 37 per cent of total domestic exports. These figures speak for themselves.

Both the Government and industrialists in Hong Kong have seen the need to maintain the competitiveness of the local clothing industry by promoting industrial training. To this end the Government appointed in 1974 a Clothing Industry Training Board, under the Hong Kong Training Council, as its principal adviser on industrial training in the clothing industry. This training board is required to advise on the training of manpower at all levels. The Board prescribes job standards and training programmes, conducts manpower surveys, assesses manpower needs and makes recommendations on how those needs can best be met. It also advises the technical education institutions on the curricula for the training of

/technologists,.....

Issued by Government Information Services, Beaconsfield House. Hong Kong. Tel: 5-233191

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