The Hong Kong Logistics Association has offered to assist the Government in setting up a specialised training institute to upgrade the skills of logistics professionals. Association chairman Raymond Leung said that over the past 12 months it had become apparent there was a lack of trained staff. 'Investing in the training of logistics personnel at various levels - operative, certificate, diploma, higher diploma/associate degree - not only meets the needs of the industry but also equips the unemployed from dying industries,' Mr Leung said. He said Forms Five and Seven graduates could be equipped with a skill most needed by a fast-growing industry. Mr Leung said Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa's stated aim in his 2000 Policy Address to make Hong Kong an international logistics hub gave practitioners in the industry the biggest stimulus. He urged the Government to support the establishment of an accreditation system, so that all logistics training and resources could be better organised and utilised to establish a sound qualifications framework and programme. 'We have worked out a membership structure to peg the education training, and with an accreditation system and professional recognition by the Government, our membership system will meet international recognition,' Mr Leung said. In developing Hong Kong into a logistics hub, the Government should help service providers stay in touch with cargo sources which were the bedrock of the industry, Mr Leung said. The main cargo sources for Hong Kong are the Pearl River Delta and Fujian. Foreign investors have opened manufacturing facilities in these areas, taking advantage of cheap land and labour to produce goods for export to the United States, Europe and Asia. Mr Leung said customs regulations between Hong Kong and China should be simplified. Industry officials said although China's customs department had improved tremendously compared with five years ago, there was still too much red tape obstructing the free flow of goods. They said when China entered the World Trade Organisation, possibly by the end of the year, and there was an upsurge in trade, the present customs regulations would be one of the main barriers in slowing trade. Customs requirements that shippers open containers when they are not satisfied with declarations can delay containers for up to a week or two. The percentage of containers required to be opened when shipped through southern Chinese ports of Yantian, Shekou and Chiwan is much higher than when passing through Hong Kong. As a result, shippers prefer to ship boxes through Hong Kong, despite the higher costs. Mr Leung said with the proper infrastructure and operating framework manned by qualified logistics professionals, Hong Kong could compete effectively and efficiently internationally. The Hong Kong Logistics Association, which has 300 members from a cross-section of the industry, was dedicated to educating people and keeping them abreast of the latest technology in the industry, he said.