XN000022-1997-04-30 — Page 38

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(c)(i) According to the latest figures available from the CITA, 1,137 trainees graduated from its Basic Craft Course and 348 participants from its Construction Supervisor / Technician Training Programme in 1995-96. Both were one-year full time courses. A detailed breakdown by work type of these courses is at Annex A. A total of 1,238 and 8,023 participants completed the short or part-time courses respectively at various skill levels for different disciplines. Detailed information on these courses is at Annex B.

The VTC is also offering both craft and technician level training for the Electrical and Mechanical trades at the technician level. In 1996/97, a total of 859 craft trainees and 741 technician trainees have enrolled in such courses. Detail information on these courses is at Annex C.

The ERB provided 22 classes for 332 retrainees for the construction industry in 1996-97. In terms of work types, 124 retrainees graduated from assistant electrician training courses, 172 graduated from training courses for decoration and 36 were trained to be site administrator.

(ii) Looking ahead, the CITA has plans to cope with the future requirement of the industry by further expanding its training programme. Specifically, the number of graduates of the various short courses is expected to increase at an average rate of 10% per year. Together with the full-time courses, CITA will have trained over 15,000 construction workers over the next five years.

The VTC plans to provide over 1,900 training places in 1997-98 at the craft and technician levels in the construction field. The VTC will, in the light of market demands, adjust its training capacity to meet Hong Kong's needs.

The ERB has not made an estimate of the number of construction workers likely to receive training through the Employees Retraining Scheme over the next few years. However, given the flexible nature of its operation, the ERB is capable of responding effectively to the retraining needs of the market.