Author Archives: hksar gov

     The Government today (August 30) welcomed the Financial Dispute Resolution Centre (FDRC)’s new appointment of Mr Richard Leung Wai-keung as a non-official Director to its Board. His term will be two years from September 1, 2019, to August 31, 2021.
 
     A government spokesman said, “We welcome Mr Leung to the Board of the FDRC, and express our heartfelt thanks to the retiring Director Mr Frederick Kan Ka-chong for his contributions as a Board Director and chairman of the Appointment Committee over the past six years.”
 
     The FDRC administers in an independent and impartial manner a financial dispute resolution scheme. The scheme provides an alternative avenue which is independent and affordable for resolving monetary disputes between financial institutions and their customers primarily by way of “Mediation First, Arbitration Next”. It is governed by a Board of Directors, comprising the non-official Chairman; four non-official members; one representative each from the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the Securities and Futures Commission; and the Chief Executive Officer of the FDRC. read more

     The Secretary for Food and Health, Professor Sophia Chan, today (August 30) visited Yau Tsim Mong District, where she called on Tung Wah College (TWC) and the Hong Kong Red Cross (HKRC) and met with District Council members.
 
     Accompanied by the Chairman of the Yau Tsim Mong District Council (YTMDC), Mr Chris Ip, and the District Officer (Yau Tsim Mong), Mrs Laura Aron, Professor Chan first visited King’s Park Campus of TWC. TWC was established by the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals in 2010. The School of Nursing and the School of Medical and Health Sciences of TWC offer training of local nurses and allied health professionals including medical laboratory technologists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists and radiographers.
 
     Professor Chan said, “The healthcare manpower situation is challenging in light of the increasing demand for healthcare services. The Government attaches great importance to the training of healthcare professionals. In the past 10 years, the Government has substantially increased the number of University Grants Committee-funded healthcare training places. The Government will also subsidise 1 160 students to pursue self-financing undergraduate programmes in nursing under the Study Subsidy Scheme for Designated Professions/Sectors in the 2019/20 academic year, representing an increase of about 400 places compared with that of the 2018/19 academic year. We expect that increasing the number of training places will alleviate the manpower shortage of healthcare staff in the medium to long term.”
 
     Afterwards, Professor Chan visited HKRC Headquarters. The new headquarters was opened in 2015 to accommodate HKRC head offices, the Jockey Club Convention Hall, meeting facilities and activity rooms, which provide services including apheresis donation, blood transfusion, haematopoietic stem cell service, youth development and education, first aid and health care as well as special education and rehabilitation services.
 
     She said, “The HKRC Blood Transfusion Service is the only organisation that provides blood supplies for all public and private hospitals in Hong Kong. The demand for blood supply is expected to be on a continuous rise as a result of an ageing population. The Government will continue to support the work of the HKRC and blood donation drives as well as promote blood donation.”
 
     Before concluding her visit, Professor Chan met with YTMDC members to exchange views on medical and environmental hygiene issues in the district. read more

     In celebration of the 40th anniversary of the MacLehose Trail, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) will hold a hiking challenge named Complete Walk on MacLehose Trail 2019 from September to November. Members of the public are welcome to join to enjoy the fun of hiking and the beautiful natural scenery of Hong Kong.
 
     Opened on October 26, 1979, the MacLehose Trail was the first long-distance hiking trail in Hong Kong, traversing from east to west through eight country parks, namely Sai Kung East, Sai Kung West, Ma On Shan, Lion Rock, Kam Shan, Shing Mun, Tai Mo Shan and Tai Lam. As the most representative hiking trail in Hong Kong and having been named as one of the world’s 20 dream trails by National Geographic magazine, the 100-kilometre MacLehose Trail is divided into 10 sections which embrace magnificent natural scenery, interesting historical relics and a wide range of wild fauna and flora, winding past the coastline, rugged mountains, valleys and reservoirs to provide a diverse outdoor experience for hikers.
 
     A spokesman for the AFCD said, “Complete Walk on MacLehose Trail 2019 is the highlight of a series of celebration events. To encourage members of the public to visit different sections of the MacLehose Trail and enjoy the breathtaking scenery in the countryside, the AFCD will hold this hiking challenge from September 1 to November 30. Hikers may complete different trail sections to experience the uniqueness of each section of the MacLehose Trail according to their physical strength, experience and preference for the routes. Participants can record the information of a completed trail section by taking simple steps with a mobile phone at the checkpoints of each trail section. Hikers will be awarded a souvenir after completing the required number of sections during the period of the challenge.”
 
     Moreover, the AFCD will also hold many other interesting celebration events suitable for different walks of life, including MacLehose Trail 40th Anniversary Celebration Day, “Public Talk: The Legendary MacLehose Trail”, MacLehose Trail Maintenance Workshop, MacLehose Trail Campers and Excursion with Experts at MacLehose Trail. While celebrating the 40th anniversary of the MacLehose Trail, these events will also allow members of the public to learn more about the trail. Hikers are welcome to join suitable events according to their own physical ability, experience and preference.
 
     For details of the events, please visit the dedicated website of the Country Parks Education Programmes: natureintouch.gov.hk.
 
     Furthermore, the AFCD has exclusively produced a series of short videos to showcase the beauty of different sections of the MacLehose Trail, in addition to showing guests sharing their personal stories related to the trail. The trailer video has already been uploaded to the Facebook page of the Country Parks Education Programmes (www.facebook.com/pg/countryparkseducationprogammes), which will be updated with new videos from time to time.

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     â€‹The Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Lau Kong-wah, today (August 30) attended the China-Japan-South Korea Cultural Ministers’ Meeting in Incheon, Korea, as a member of the Chinese delegation and delivered a speech introducing the latest cultural developments of Hong Kong. 
 
     In his speech, Mr Lau said many artists and arts groups from Japan and Korea showcase their talents in Hong Kong every year. Artists in Hong Kong also engage in international exchanges with the support of the Arts Development Fund. The first Hong Kong Week will be held in Shanghai in November this year.
 
     Looking ahead, Mr Lau said Hong Kong’s art and cultural scene will scale new heights. The world-class arts and cultural district in Hong Kong, the West Kowloon Cultural District, has begun to take shape. Its Xiqu Centre was opened at the end of last year, and the Hong Kong Palace Museum and M+ will be completed in the coming years. The Hong Kong Museum of Art will open by the end of this year after renovation and expansion.
 
     Mr Lau started his visit to Korea yesterday (August 29). He first visited Arts Center Incheon and attended the Korea-China-Japan Cultural Festival in the evening. Today he met with the Vice Mayor of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Mr Kang Tae-woong, and visited the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in the afternoon. He will return to Hong Kong from Incheon this evening.

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     The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) today (August 30) released the latest grading of water quality for 38 gazetted beaches that are open for swimming and one non-gazetted beach (Discovery Bay*).   
   
     Twenty-one beaches were rated as Good (Grade 1), 17 as Fair (Grade 2) and one as Poor (Grade 3).
 
Grade 1 beaches are: 
    

Cheung Chau Tung Wan Beach	Middle Bay Beach
Chung Hom Kok Beach	Repulse Bay Beach
Clear Water Bay Second Beach	Shek O Beach
Deep Water Bay Beach	South Bay Beach
Discovery Bay	St Stephen’s Beach
Hap Mun Bay Beach	Stanley Main Beach
Hung Shing Yeh Beach	Tong Fuk Beach
Kiu Tsui Beach	Trio Beach
Kwun Yam Beach	Turtle Cove Beach
Lo So Shing Beach	Upper Cheung Sha Beach
Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach

 
Grade 2 beaches are:
 

Anglers’ Beach	Hoi Mei Wan Beach
Approach Beach	Kadoorie Beach
Big Wave Bay Beach	Lido Beach
Butterfly Beach	Lower Cheung Sha Beach
Cafeteria New Beach	Pui O Beach
Cafeteria Old Beach	Silver Mine Bay Beach
Casam Beach	Silverstrand Beach
Clear Water Bay First Beach	Ting Kau Beach
Golden Beach

 
Grade 3 beach is:
 

Castle Peak Beach

 
* Discovery Bay is a non-gazetted beach without lifeguard service.
 
     Compared with the grading released last week, Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach has been upgraded from Grade 2 to Grade 1 and Big Wave Bay Beach from Grade 3 to Grade 2. Clear Water Bay First Beach has been changed from Grade 1 to Grade 2. 

     “The changes are generally within the normal range of fluctuation of the bacteriological water quality of the beaches,” an EPD spokesman said.

     Under the present grading system, beaches are classified into four grades, including Good (Grade 1), Fair (Grade 2), Poor (Grade 3) and Very Poor (Grade 4), according to the level of E. coli in the water. Grades are calculated on the basis of the geometric mean of the E. coli counts on the five most recent sampling occasions.

     While the ratings represent the general water quality at the beaches, the EPD spokesman reminded members of the public that water quality could be temporarily affected during and after periods of heavy rain. Bathers should avoid swimming at beaches for up to three days after a storm or heavy rainfall.
 
     A summary of beach grades is published weekly before the weekend. The latest beach grades based on the most current data may be obtained from the department’s website on Beach Water Quality (www.epd.gov.hk/epd/beach) or the beach hotline, 2511 6666. read more