Chinese community an integral part of NI society - Minister

Minister for Employment and Learning Barry Gardiner today paid tribute to the contribution made by the Chinese community to the economic, cultural and social life of Northern Ireland.

During an award ceremony held at Parliament Buildings, 40 trainees from the Chinese community achieved vocational training qualifications in ICT, on a two-year project, initiated by the Chinese Welfare Association.

Prior to presenting the winners with their awards, Mr Gardiner said: “The Chinese community in Northern Ireland is now well established, with third and fourth generations living and working here.

“It is highly valued and respected and forms an integral part of our society. Chinese people make a major contribution to our economic, social and cultural life, despite barriers such as language, and sometimes, regrettably, racism, which the Government is determined to tackle, wherever it arises.”

Emphasising that one of his department’s core aims was the promotion of greater access to education and training, Mr Gardiner added: “I congratulate the Chinese Welfare Association for initiating this innovative project to deliver vocational training through the medium of Cantonese.

“One of the project’s significant achievements is the way in which it has helped trainees to overcome the language barrier to enable access to vocational training. The result is that trainees have been assisted to take the first steps towards vocational areas of employment, that otherwise would not be accessible to them.”

During his speech to award winners and their guests, the Minister also indicated that the Department for Employment and Learning would shortly be publishing its Skills Strategy for Northern Ireland.

He indicated that the strategy would place ICT among the core group of skills that were fundamental to the ability of Northern Ireland to compete in a knowledge-based economy.

The Chinese Welfare Association is the main organisation for the support and representation of the Chinese community in Northern Ireland.

(MB/SP)