Delta youngsters

With an aim of building a closer working relationship between Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau in order to further develop the business, culture and human resource sectors as a whole in the Pearl River Delta region, the 2016 Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau Youth Cultural Tour kicked off this week. The opening ceremony was held on Tuesday in Macau.
This 10-day exchange programme provides a platform for university students from Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau to further understand each other’s culture, history and economic development. Over the 10 days, participating students will visit Macau for three days, Hong Kong for two days and Guangdong for five days.
The Macau SAR Tertiary Education Services Office (GAES) has allocated a budget of MOP350,000 (US$ 43,796) to cover the costs of hosting all students whilst in Macau. The budget remains the same as the previous year, according to GAES.
Various programmes
More than 100 students from various colleges and universities in Macau, Hong Kong and Guangdong have participated in the exchange programme. The total number of participants is the same as last year, according to GAES.
This year’s theme is creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship. The exchange programme includes lectures, visits, tours, interviews, exchanges and team training activities.
The students will visit the city’s world heritage sites, including Macau Science Centre, Macau Museum of Art, 10 Fantasia, Tap Seac Gallery and Anim’Arte Nam Van.
“Each year’s event has different themes. The exchange programme enables students to further understand the latest development in the cultural and creative industry in the three regions. It also gives them an opportunity to broaden their horizons,” Vong Iut Peng, functional head of the Tertiary Education Services Office told reporters covering the event.
“All the participating students are from different areas of their studies. The programme gives them an opportunity to explore the creative industry which can help to foster their interest in working in the creative industry later on once they have finished their degrees,” Ms.
Vong said.
The event is free of charge for all participant students, and is funded and organised by GAES, the Hong Kong SAR Home Affairs Department and the Department of Culture of Guangdong Province.
The event first started in 2009, with this year marking the eighth edition.
Open doors
Participating students hope to conduct exchanges with students from different places and backgrounds so that they can learn about their cultures. Local students see the creative industry as a door to opening up different areas for them to develop upon graduation.
Kelly Ng Pui Man, one of the Macau students participating in the programme, and currently studying for a nursing degree at Macau Polytechnic Institute, said, “I find this year’s exchange programme interesting as I can see the Macau Government supports the local creative industry such as craft markets in Nam Van.”
Leonardo Poon Chok Kei, a Hong Kong student participant from Hong Kong Polytechnic University currently studying for an accounting and finance degree believes that it is not necessary to have a degree in the arts in order to be able to work in the creative industry and thinks that interest in the arts should be fostered over time.
“This programme gives me the opportunity to experience what the cultural industry is like in different places. Some famous artists, filmmakers and directors from Hong Kong don’t have an arts degree but can still work and pursue a career in the creative industry,” he said.
Zhong Xiao Yin, a participating student from the Guangdong Dance and Drama College studying arts management said that her first impression of Macau is all about casinos and believes that this exchange would give her a different perspective of Macau. “It is about cultural understanding as we cannot fully experience the local culture on the Internet. By joining the exchange programme, it gives me the opportunity to experience the authentic local culture in person.”