ENG-1983 — Page 119

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EDUCATION

With this in mind, the government in February 1982 set up the Vocational Training Council under the Vocational Training Council Ordinance. Besides advising on measures required to ensure a comprehensive system of technical education and industrial training suited to the developing needs of Hong Kong, its role is to set up, develop and operate training schemes for training operatives, craftsmen, technicians and technologists necessary to maintain and improve Hong Kong's industry, commerce and services, and also to establish, operate and maintain technical institutes and industrial training centres.

On the council's recommendation, the Governor set up 19 training boards and six general committees. The training boards cover major economic sectors: accountancy; automobile repairs and servicing; banking; building and civil engineering; clothing; electrical; electronics; hotel, catering and tourism; insurance; jewellery; journalism; ma- chine shop and metal working; merchant navy; plastics; printing; shipbuilding and ship repairs; textiles; transport and physical distribution; and wholesale, retail, import and export trades. The six general committees deal with apprenticeship and trade testing; training in electronic data processing; management and supervisory training; technical education; technologist training; and translation.

The training boards determine the future manpower needs of their respective industries or commercial sectors and recommend measures to meet such needs, prepare job specifications, design training programmes and trade test guidelines, and carry out other duties such as operating and maintaining training centres. The general committees are responsible for specific training areas which cut across several sectors of the economy. The council, its training boards and committees are serviced by the Technical Education and Industrial Training Department which acts as its executive arm. Most of the officers in the department work directly to the council through its executive director who is also the head of the department.

During the year, 11 manpower surveys were conducted covering building and civil engineering; clothing; electrical; electronic data processing; hotel, catering and tourism; insurance; jewellery; journalism; plastics; textiles; and transport and physical distribution. In the same period, the training boards prepared or revised job specifications, training programmes and trade test guidelines for all principal jobs in their industries. A glossary of common technical terms used in commerce and services was also being finalised. All completed survey reports and manuals are on sale at the Government Publications Centre.

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Technical Education The five technical institutes Morrison Hill Technical Institute in Wan Chai, Haking Wong Technical Institute in Cheung Sha Wan, Lee Wai Lee Technical Institute in Kowloon Tong, and the Kwun Tong and Kwai Chung Technical Institutes – provide an increasing range of courses at craft and technician levels on a full-time, or part-time day or evening basis. The main disciplines include clothing, commercial studies, construction, design, electrical engineering, general studies, hotel-keeping and tourism, industrial tech- nology, marine and fabrication, mechanical engineering, printing and textiles. A new department of motor vehicle engineering was set up at the Lee Wai Lee Technical Institute in September. Most of the technician level courses are validated by the United Kingdom Business and Technician Education Council.

In addition to the normal courses, some 130 short courses were offered for the first time as a summer programme, designed largely to enable people in employment to update their knowledge or to learn new skills. Nine departmental boards, with representatives from the training boards as well as from industry, commerce or education, have been set up to plan and organise the academic activities of the technical institutes.