As trade continues to boom in the Pearl River Delta, demand for a Polytechnic University specialist part-time course is on the rise here and in the mainland.
Leon Li Yuk-on, programme director for the master of science/postgraduate diploma in global supply chain management, said when the course - the only one of its kind in Hong Kong - began in 2004, 50 students enrolled to take part. The quota has increased to 80 this year.
Supply chain management essentially entails systems of planning and control of products or materials through a supply chain - from the point of origin to the point of consumption.
The programme, offered by Polytechnic University's Graduate School of Business, targets executives in the fields of supply chain management (SCM) and logistics.
'Logistics is becoming more popular and we saw there was a market for logistics or SCM-related expertise, so we wanted to develop a course for people who wanted to be trained in other areas and pursue a higher degree due to their work,' Dr Li said.
'Development, especially in the Pearl River Delta, is substantial - on the one hand it's highly competitive, but on the other hand there is a mutual benefit.
'There has been an increasing demand from the mainland for the course, mainly from Shenzhen. As it's a part-time programme, it's difficult for others (further afield on the mainland) to attend courses.