Government IT awareness programme recognised as outstanding
23 - 03 - 2001

The efforts made by the Government to promote the awareness of information technology (IT) among people with disabilities are recognised.

Jointly organised by the Government and the Hong Kong Council of Social Service (HKCSS), the "IT Awareness Programme for People with Disabilities" was elected as one of the outstanding issues in 2000 in a campaign held by the Hong Kong Blind Union (HKBU) last month.

Three hundred members of the HKBU elected a total of nine outstanding issues in 2000 in the campaign.

Representatives from the Government were presented with prizes in a ceremony held today (March 23).

The "IT Awareness Programme for People with Disabilities" is one of the events in the "IT Hong Kong" Campaign launched by the Government last year to enhance the public's awareness and knowledge on IT.

Free IT awareness courses with hands-on experience on basic computer operations and surfing on the Internet are offered in the Programme.

The courses are organised in joint efforts by the Information Technology Services Department (ITSD), the Social Welfare Department and the HKCSS, and are funded by the Information Technology and Broadcasting Bureau.

"The recognition given to the Programme by members of the HKBU is very encouraging to us," said a spokesman for the ITSD after the presentation ceremony today.

"We are glad to know that our users have found the courses beneficial and useful," he said. "It has also reinforced our commitment to promoting the wider use of IT in the community."

The spokesman also noted that the IT awareness courses for people with disabilities had received a large number of applications since its first round was launched in November last year.

"The number of applications was nearly double to the number of places offered in the courses," said the spokesman.

"To cater for the demand of the applicants, we launched the second round of the courses early this year, enabling more than 3 000 people with disabilities to benefit from two rounds of the courses."

"Additionally, a group of volunteers as well as some family members of the disabled have also participated in the courses so that they can help more people with disabilities to learn and to use IT in their daily life."

"Meanwhile, the Government plans to launch the third round of the courses in the coming fiscal year, and implement other measures to further enhance the awareness and knowledge of IT of the disabled," he said.

In the IT awareness courses, the participants learned the basic idea of what a personal computer (PC) and the Internet are, the skills of operating a PC and how to browse the Internet for information.

Each of the participants was provided with course material and a dedicated PC or workstation with access to the Internet and equipped with all necessary software for hands-on practice.

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