Kick-off Ceremony of Enriched IT Programme in Secondary Schools (with photos)

The Financial Secretary announced in the 2014-15 Budget that “we plan to incorporate enrichment programmes in secondary schools which are outstanding in IT education. By so doing, we hope to cultivate young IT professionals and even entrepreneurs to meet the development needs of a digital society.” A funding of $75 million is provided for the implementation of the Enriched IT Programme (EITP) in secondary schools for eight school years from 2015/16 to 2022/23. The programme is a collaborative effort of schools to work with tertiary institutions, the industry and government to scout and cultivate IT talent early in their secondary school years.

The EITP comprises two complementary elements as follows —

1. Enriched IT Class — Eight partner schools will provide intensive IT training to students (from secondary two to secondary six) who are interested and talented in IT.
2. Enriched IT Activities — IT activities will be organised by secondary schools each year to foster a pro-IT atmosphere and stimulate interest in IT in the school community.

To mark the launching of the EITP, we organised a Kick-off Ceremony on 7 November 2015 with the Financial Secretary as the officiating guest to deliver a speech. Over 300 students and 150 other guests (including principals, teachers, parents, and IT practitioners from academia, IT industry and IT professional organisations) attended the Kick-off Ceremony held in the Conference Hall of the Central Government Offices. A multi-media animation video, which was produced by IT Class students of the partner schools, was played in the ceremony. Certificates of Enriched IT Class were presented to principals of the partner schools by the Deputy Secretary for Education of the Education Bureau. The Government Chief Information Officer (GCIO) led IT Class students to pledge their full commitment to enhance their knowledge and broaden their horizon through active participation in the Enriched IT Class and related activities. To let students have a better understanding of the IT industry of Hong Kong and its development potential, an interactive discussion session with the theme “How to Cultivate the New Generation of IT talent” was moderated by the GCIO with the participation of three guest speakers from academia and IT industry to share their valuable experience and views for joining the challenging and rewarding ICT profession.

To view the video of the Kick-off Ceremony, please click here.

Speech by Financial Secretary