The jobs of the future will come from the world-class research happening at the University of Wollongong.
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That's what NSW's new Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology, Alister Henskens told the Mercury yesterday during a visit to the Illawarra.
Mr Henskens, who is also Minister for Skills and Training, checked out principally the medical-directed research at UOW's main campus before heading to Wollongong TAFE.
He also dropped by the Innovation Campus where he toured the Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials and the Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFN) with ANFN head professor Gordon Wallace.
"What we are really encouraging and what we are seeing, is the way in which our world-class researchers are really imagining the industries and the jobs of the future," Mr Henskens said.
"In an area like the Illawarra, which has been traditionally the manufacturing powerhouse of Australia, there is still always going to be a strong need for steel production and some of the traditional manufacturing here in the Illawarra but the jobs of the future are going to be coming out of this world-class research that is happening here at the University of Wollongong.
"We as a government are encouraging those industries and jobs of the future.
"This is where there is this great potential for partnership between our university sector, but also our traditional skills and training sectors to come together so that we've got advanced manufacturing, so that we have these industries and jobs of the future happening as quickly as possible here in the Illawarra."
Mr Henskens said he was glad his first visit outside Sydney as Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology, was to the Illawarra.
"It is incredibly important for equality of opportunity throughout our state, that we have strong regional universities like UOW giving equal access to opportunity to all people," he said.
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