Secretary for Education Choi Yuk-lin attended the WorldSkills Lyon 2024 event to cheer for the Hong Kong, China delegation as she began her visit to France on September 10.

She also spoke at a panel discussion of the WorldSkills Conference to promote vocational and professional education and training (VPET) in Hong Kong.

Organised biennially by WorldSkills International, the WorldSkills Competition is the largest skills competition in the world. The event has attracted more than 1,400 participants from nearly 70 countries and regions this year.

Hong Kong has sent a total of 37 skilled elites from various local institutions to participate in 32 skills competitions, the largest on record in terms of both the numbers of participants and competitions, the Education Bureau said.

The education chief met the Hong Kong, China delegation while attending the opening ceremony of WorldSkills Lyon 2024.

She highlighted that Hong Kong has won numerous awards since its participation in the WorldSkills Competition in 1997, adding that contestants showcased their vocational skills on the international stage, gaining worldwide recognition.

Additionally, she pointed out that, according to the Vocational Training Council's latest statistics, the average monthly salary of the council's VPET graduates has been trending up in recent years, with an increase of about 6%.

Such data reflects society's recognition of talent with applied knowledge and skills, the keen demand for vocational talent, and the growing importance of VPET for socio-economic development, she said.

Ms Choi attended the WorldSkills Conference the next day, September 11, and spoke at a panel discussion to share Hong Kong's VPET development and experiences with education representatives from different places and organisations.

She noted that the Education Bureau has continued to adopt the strategy of fostering industry-institution collaboration and diversified development to encourage the alignment of classroom education with industry needs and collaboration between businesses and education institutions.

Furthermore, Ms Choi explained that a series of measures were introduced to promote VPET as a pathway parallel to conventional academic education under a multipronged approach.

One of the measures is to press ahead with the establishment of universities of applied sciences (UAS) to encourage institutions to closely collaborate with professional skills sectors, such as incorporating more substantial internship and work-based learning opportunities in their programmes.

She emphasised that such a move will help students develop applied skills and raise the VPET’s status and attractiveness in the long run, providing an alternative pathway to success for young people.

The Government has granted a start-up fund to support the formation of the Alliance of UAS to comprehensively take forward the development of UAS through joint promotion and strengthening collaboration with international UAS.

Ms Choi then visited the venue of the WorldSkills Competition where she watched the Hong Kong, China delegation and showed her support for the contestants. She also encouraged them to do their best and give full play to their strengths.

The education chief will depart for Paris on September 12 to continue her duty visit.