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The Secretary for Education (SED), Mr Eddie Ng Hak-kim, will depart from Hong Kong tomorrow (May 19) for a duty visit to Belgium and Finland to strengthen Hong Kong's education ties with European Union (EU) countries and learn more about the latest developments and good practices in the EU system, particularly in vocational education and multilingual education as well as information and communications technology.
Upon his arrival in Brussels, Mr Ng will visit and exchange views with senior officials of the Directorate General for Education and Culture of the European Commission. He will also meet with representatives of the European University Association and the Academic Co-operation Association, as well as academics from France and Germany, followed by a visit to a local university.
Mr Ng will fly to Helsinki on the evening of May 20, where he will meet with Finland's Minister of Education and Science and the Mayor of Helsinki. He will also visit the Finnish National Board of Education as well as a number of higher education, vocational education and teacher training institutions and a local school.
During his stay in Helsinki, Mr Ng will take the opportunity to meet with members of the business sector and Hong Kong students in Finland to update them on the latest developments in Hong Kong.
Accompanying the SED will be the Deputy Secretary for Education, Dr Catherine K K Chan; Administrative Assistant to the SED, Mr Kenneth Cheng; and member of the Standing Committee on Language Education and Research, Professor Chan Shui-duen. They will return to Hong Kong on May 24.
During Mr Ng's absence, the Under Secretary for Education, Mr Kevin Yeung, will be the Acting SED.
Ends/Sunday, May 18, 2014
Issued at HKT 11:00
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