Vice-Chancellor's Report 1978-82

were academic staff from the University invited into China, they were also asked to make special trips to major universities and academic institutions to advise, give lectures and conduct seminars. Several exchange schemes were set up as a result of these visits and some of the University's academic staff became regular speakers and honorary lecturers i n universities there. Nor was the flow of visitors one way. As this kind of academic exchange became more popular, several universities i n China also started sending their academics and researchers to Hong Kong to visit the University and attend seminars and training courses. The University believes that this kind of academic exchange is mutually beneficial and is the unmistakable hallmark of an open society. One of the universities i n China which developed a close relationship wi th the University very early on was the University of Zhong- shan in Guangzhou. Ever since 1978 ， a steady stream of academics had been making visits both ways, and, in hope of strengthening the relation that had been built up, Zhongshan University proposed and the University agreed to an academic exchange programme beginning in February 1982. Many activities were envisaged, and a number of them materialized despite early difficulties. It is expected that the programme will continue into the years ahead. In 1981, after considerable negotiation and preparation, the University started a four-month training programme in marketing for trade officers and managers from the Machinery and Equipment Import and Export Corporation of the First Ministry of Machinery, and of the Guangdong Machinery Department and the Guangdong Committee on Foreign Trade. This was jointly organized by the Department of Marketing and International Business and the Department of Extramural Studies. The objective of the programme was to help the management personnel who attended the course acquire professional knowledge and skills i n international marketing to meet the needs of China's rapid development in foreign trade, wi th particular reference to Chinese industrial products and consumer goods. The subjects taught included basic skills in management, basic concepts about marketing and practice in marketing. Teachers i n this programme were drawn from the Faculty of Business Administration of the University. As part of the programme, a series of related activities were arranged for the participants by companies i n the private sector to enable them to gain a better understanding 48