The city has seen 65 workers from the tourism industry obtain international English accreditation in the first half of the year, a government body has disclosed.
In response to lawmaker Ella Lei’s written inquiry dated August 5, acting director Cheng Wai Tong of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) made this disclosure. His reply was dated September 1.
The lawmaker asked about retention and cultivation of a multidisciplinary workforce as well as culinary or design professionals in the tourism industry. She feared that, with Covid-19 restrictions still lingering in Macau, the tourism industry may not have a sufficient workforce when the city fully reopens to the foreign world. She acknowledges the cultivation of culinary professionals, which the government commenced in 2017, when the city was listed as a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy.
In addition to this disclosure, citing the Labour Affairs Bureau (DSAL), Cheng reiterated that vocational training-examination programs have been made available since 2015. As of July this year, more than 1,200 local residents have obtained vocational aptitude accreditations at various levels.
Moreover, the DSAL has, since 2013, also started offering courses covering various disciplines, such as language, customer service and interpersonal communications.
Cheng added that interested parties may also consider pursuing a career through higher education, and that five of the city’s higher education institutions are operating related programs, with over 2,300 students having taken part in the past academic year.
On attracting cultural clientele, the MGTO official pointed out, citing the Cultural Affairs Bureau, that the Virtual Reality experience at the Ruins of St Paul’s would be commenced this year. Resident shows will also be introduced to several venues, such as the Mandarin House, the Dom Pedro V Theatre and the Navy Yard. The tourism industry will also be commissioned to operate certain businesses at arts and cultural venues.
