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More than 60 Hong Kong undergraduate interns and exchange students in Singapore attended a sharing session hosted by the Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) in Singapore, Mr Fong Ngai, this evening (August 14).
The attendees were Hong Kong students joining various university exchange programmes and summer internship schemes, including the ASEAN Internship for University Students of Hong Kong Scheme initiated by the HKETO last year.
Mr Fong said he was glad to see the participants candidly share their experiences gained from the summer internships and exchange studies in Singapore, in particular discussing their diverse perspectives on the socio-cultural, economic and infrastructural developments in the region.
"Our younger generation is an asset for Hong Kong's future. We hope that more young people will be willing to explore different cultures and the rapid economic developments of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries. With more people-to-people exchanges through internships and exchange programmes in the region, our young people will have more chances for cultivating their minds, and equip themselves with global insights to pursue their personal goals," he said.
Last year, the HKETO started to arrange internships in ASEAN countries with a view to broadening the international horizons of Hong Kong university students and enhancing their understanding of the rapidly growing ASEAN countries, which have become increasingly important trading partners of Hong Kong.
This year, nearly 200 Hong Kong students are taking internships in eight ASEAN countries, and more than 120 are based in Singapore. The ASEAN internship scheme provides an excellent opportunity for students of participating higher education institutions in Hong Kong to work in a foreign culture for around two months, making friends and building relationships with counterparts in ASEAN.
"We have 85 host organisations participating in the 2015 ASEAN Internship for University Students of Hong Kong Scheme, and we are appealing to more host organisations to take part in the 2016 round of our ASEAN internship scheme. We hope that our efforts can continue to be beneficial to the young people of Hong Kong," he said.
Ends/Friday, August 14, 2015
Issued at HKT 19:02
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