Author Archives: hksar gov

     The Department of Health (DH) today (March 27) is investigating a case of illegal sale of slimming products containing undeclared controlled drug ingredients on the Internet and urged the public not to buy or consume the products concerned (see photo).

     Acting upon intelligence, the DH purchased on a social media platform some slimming products, reportedly obtained from overseas, for analysis. The laboratory test results revealed that the samples of some products contained frusemide, metformin and thyroxine. All of them are Part 1 poisons under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance (Cap. 138) (PPO).

     The packages of the products concerned have Thai, Chinese and English characters, and are suspected to be unregistered pharmaceutical products. The DH will continue to follow up and investigate the case.

     Frusemide is used for the treatment of heart diseases and its side effects include low blood pressure and electrolyte imbalance. Metformin is used for the treatment of diabetes mellitus and its side effects include nausea and diarrhoea. Thyroxine is used for the treatment of hypothyroidism and its side effects include arrhythmia and hypertension. Medicines containing these ingredients should be used under a doctor’s directions and be supplied on the premises of an Authorized Seller of Poisons (i.e. pharmacy) under the supervision of a registered pharmacist upon a doctor’s prescription.

     According to the PPO, all pharmaceutical products must be registered with the Pharmacy and Poisons Board of Hong Kong before they can be sold in the market. Illegal sale or possession of unregistered pharmaceutical products or Part 1 poisons are criminal offences. The maximum penalty for each offence upon conviction is a fine of $100,000 and two years’ imprisonment.

     The DH strongly urged members of the public not to buy or consume products of doubtful composition or from unknown sources. All registered pharmaceutical products should carry a Hong Kong registration number on the package in the format of “HK-XXXXX”. The safety, quality and efficacy of unregistered pharmaceutical products are not guaranteed.

     People who have purchased the products concerned should stop consuming them immediately and consult healthcare professionals if in doubt or if they feel unwell after consumption. They may submit the products to the Drug Office of the DH at Room 1804-06, 18/F, Wing On Kowloon Centre, 345 Nathan Road, Kowloon, during office hours for disposal.

     Weight control should be achieved through a balanced diet and appropriate exercise. The public should consult healthcare professionals before consuming any medication for weight control. They may visit the website of the Drug Office of the DH for “Health message on overweight problem and slimming products” and “Slimming products with undeclared Western drug ingredients” for information.

  

     â€‹The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) today (March 27) announced that the winter influenza season, which started in early January 2025, has come to an end. The relatively low number of severe and death cases this season is believed to be the result of the concerted and comprehensive efforts of various stakeholders in the community and the public to increase the seasonal influenza vaccination (SIV) rate. On the other hand, the CHP anticipates the activity of other respiratory infectious diseases, including COVID-19, to become more active as Hong Kong enters spring and summer. Members of the public are reminded to remain vigilant, and high risk groups should receive COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible to minimise the risk of serious complications and death after infection.
      
Influenza season is over
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     “The CHP has been closely monitoring the local seasonal influenza activity through a series of indicators. Since the start of the winter influenza season in early January this year, the seasonal influenza activity in Hong Kong has continued to increase and remained at the highest level from late January to early February and then gradually declined. According to surveillance data as of March 22, the percentage of respiratory specimens testing positive for seasonal influenza viruses was 2.3 per cent, and the public hospital admission rate related to influenza was 0.12 per 10 000 population. Both dropped below the baseline levels. The weekly number of influenza-like illness outbreaks in schools and institutions also dropped from more than 20 in January to February to an average of 12 in the last two weeks. As various indicators suggest that the influenza virus is at a low activity level, the CHP assesses that the influenza season is over,” the Controller of the CHP, Dr Edwin Tsui said.

     He noted that the current influenza season lasted for about 11 weeks, about the same length as in the past. Since only one influenza virus strain, i.e. influenza A (H1), predominated during the period, the influenza season was not prolonged due to a shift in virus strains.

     “As in the past, severe or death cases related to seasonal influenza continued to affect primarily the elderly and children. Compared to the 2018/19 influenza season prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, which was also dominated by influenza A (H1), the 488 severe cases involving adults recorded this season was about 20 per cent lower than the 2018/19 influenza season, when 601 cases were recorded. For children, 10 cases of severe influenza-associated complications were recorded this season (without deaths), which was nearly 60 per cent lower than 24 cases (including one death) recorded in the 2018/19 influenza season. We believe that this is the result of the general public’s willingness to receive the seasonal flu vaccine,” Dr Tsui said.

     With the concerted efforts of all sectors of the community (including the medical sector, schools, parents and residential care homes), as of March 23 this year, a total of about 2.07 million doses of vaccine were administered under various SIV programmes in the year 2024/25, representing an increase of about 12.2 per cent over the same period of the last influenza vaccination season and exceeding the total number of doses (about 1.87 million doses) administered last season, which is a record high. The coverage rates exceeded 50 per cent in most age groups, ranging from 51.3 per cent to 73.8 per cent. The coverage rates increased in all relevant age groups compared with the same period last season. The Hospital Authority (HA) also actively dovetails with the Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Programme of the Government in providing free influenza vaccination to eligible persons under the programme at its general and specialist out-patient clinics. As of March 23 this year, the HA has administered a total of about 580 000 doses of vaccine to the above-mentioned persons, representing an increase of about 18.4 per cent compared with the previous influenza vaccination season. In addition, to better protect patients, staff and their families, approximately 60 500 HA staff have received seasonal influenza vaccines. This number also increased by 11.8 per cent compared with the previous season.

     The number of schools participating in the SIV School Outreach Programme has also increased significantly this year. About 1 020 kindergartens/child care centres (97 per cent), about 640 primary schools (98 per cent) and about 490 secondary schools (98 per cent) have completed or will conduct SIV school outreach activities, which is higher than the participation rates in year 2023/24 (80 per cent of kindergartens/child care centres, 95 per cent of primary schools and 70 per cent of secondary schools).

2025/26 Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Scheme
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     “On March 21, 2025, the Scientific Committee on Vaccine Preventable Diseases (SCVPD) under the CHP issued recommendations on the seasonal influenza vaccines to be used and the priority groups for receiving vaccination for the upcoming 2025/26 influenza season in Hong Kong, after reviewing the scientific evidence, local data, the latest World Health Organization recommendations and overseas practices. The Government is proactively planning for the 2025/26 SIV Programmes, including liaising with vaccine suppliers on the availability of vaccines for the upcoming season in preparation for vaccine procurement, planning for the provision of nasal live-attenuated influenza vaccines to all schools, and allowing all schools to choose between injectable inactivated influenza vaccine and nasal live-attenuated influenza vaccine at the same or different outreach vaccination activities, in order to provide further facilitation and encourage all schools to participate in the SIV School Outreach Programme in the coming season,” Dr Tsui added.

     Regarding the 2025/26 SIV Programmes, the Government will also explore the feasibility of procuring some influenza vaccines for participating private doctors participating in the Vaccination Subsidy Scheme and is obtaining information from suppliers about the market supply situation. An announcement will be made at an appropriate time.

     “The SIV coverage rates for children aged 6 months to under 2 years and people aged between 50 and 64 remained relatively low at about 26.8 per cent and 25.3 per cent respectively. Although slightly higher than that of the same period last season, it was still lower than that of other age groups. Targeting these two age groups with relatively lower vaccination rates, the Government will strengthen targeted publicity in the coming season and enhance collaboration with family doctors to encourage their clients in the community to receive seasonal influenza vaccines to safeguard the health of the public,” Dr Tsui added.

Prevention of other respiratory infectious diseases
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     Although the winter influenza season is over, members of the public should not overlook the presence of those respiratory pathogens that will become more active in spring and summer, including rhinovirus/enterovirus, respiratory syncytial virus, human metapneumovirus and summer influenza season.

     Furthermore, there has been a recent increase in the activity of COVID-19 in the local community. In the past three weeks, the load of SARS-CoV-2 virus from sewage surveillance, the percentage of specimens tested positive and the average consultation rate of COVID-19 cases in general out-patient clinics have continued to rise from low levels. As of March 22, the viral load per capita of SARS-CoV-2 virus was around 260 000 copy/litre, which was significantly higher than the previous week ending March 15, when it was 85 000 copy/litre.

      “The public should maintain good personal, hand and environmental hygiene. Furthermore, high-risk persons should receive COVID-19 booster doses at appropriate times to lower the risks of serious illness and death. Genetic analysis has shown that the most predominant circulating strains in Hong Kong are still JN.1 and its descendant lineages, and the vaccines currently used in Hong Kong can effectively prevent the related variant,” Dr Tsui said.

     “Scientific data shows that timely booster doses of COVID-19 vaccine for high-risk persons help lower the risk of severe illness and death. Members of the public who have not received the initial dose of the COVID-19 vaccine (including infants and children) should get vaccinated as soon as possible. Those at high risk (particularly the elderly and persons with underlying comorbidities) should receive a booster dose as soon as possible for effective prevention against COVID-19,” he added.

     Dr Tsui reminded members of the public that anyone with symptoms of a respiratory infection, even if the symptoms are mild, should wear a surgical mask and seek medical advice promptly to lower the risk of spreading the disease to high-risk persons.

     Members of the public may refer to the CHP’s COVID-19 & Flu Express, Seasonal Influenza Webpage, COVID-19 Vaccination Programme Webpage, and Vaccination Schemes Webpage, for the latest information. read more

     The Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, chaired the 18th meeting of the Youth Development Commission (YDC) today (March 27).
          
     At the meeting, members were briefed by government representatives on the latest implementation progress of the Youth Development Blueprint since its release in December 2022. Members were pleased to note that bureaux and departments have been promoting youth development work at full steam in accordance with the guiding principles as stated in the Blueprint. Apart from implementing some 160 specific actions set out in the Blueprint and nearly 60 measures that were introduced in 2023, various policy bureaux have also introduced over 30 youth-related new measures in the past year in response to the latest social situation and needs of young people. This ensures that the Blueprint is progressing with the times and can continue to respond to the changing needs of young people.
         
     At the meeting, the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau (HYAB) also reported on the latest developments of the Youth Link, which was established in September 2023. Members appreciated that the HYAB would continue to organise or provide a variety of activities for Youth Link members, covering youth dialogue sessions, exchange visits to the Mainland, participation in international affairs, volunteer services, special visits, etc, offering them opportunities to develop diverse talents and contribute to the community, and at the same time strengthening their communication and mutual trust with the Government. The Youth Link currently has over 18 000 youth members, effectively linking up participants of various government youth development programmes.
      
     Mr Chan said, “Over the past two years, the Government has been implementing and actively updating the Blueprint measures on an ongoing basis. This clearly demonstrates the Government’s commitment and determination to promoting long-term youth development. I extend my gratitude to all members for their active participation in the implementation and promotion of the Blueprint, as well as their collaboration with bureaux and departments to transform the vision of the Blueprint into reality – creating a fostering environment where our young people can flourish and unleash their full potential.”

    

     Following are the remarks by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui, for launching the Hong Kong Family Office Nexus Digital Knowledge Hub at the inaugural Bloomberg Family Office Summit today (March 27):
 
     In the coming few minutes, I am sharing with you some of the offerings that the Government is working with Bloomberg to promote Hong Kong as a leading hub for family offices.
      
     As you can see from the name of today’s summit, it’s about family offices. What we are now working on is a digital hub that we want to provide, a one-stop shop for either family offices already here or potential family offices thinking or considering to come here to be provided with all sorts of information they need; either regulatory-wise, market-wise, governance-wise, or even in terms of events like this one, in such a way that there is a one-stop platform where they can get this information.
      
     You may ask why we are doing that. For the collaboration between Bloomberg and the Government, we are also working with Invest Hong Kong, which is an investment agency of the Hong Kong Government to entice corporates and also individuals and investors to come here. Among other things, we have tasked them with the overall objective of trying to get for Hong Kong at least 200 single family offices by the year 2025. I would say that it is a target that we find quite easy to achieve. As all of you can see from today’s turnout and also from this week’s attendance as in many major events, including this one of course, and our Wealth for Good Summit in Hong Kong for family offices and the HSBC Global Investment Summit, the interest among many financial people and family offices to be set up here is tremendous. Once they are here, of course they are looking to see what sorts of information and resources they can refer to. And that’s why, again this backdrop, there are four pillars that we are working on. Number one is about community, and secondly, it’s about knowledge. Thirdly, it’s about technology, and finally it’s about philanthropy. The needs and demands or even aspirations of family offices are multiple, so what we try to provide is actually a holistic package for either established family offices and even potential ones, in such a way that they can get all the information that they need.
      
     I may sound a little bit too philosophical. That’s why I am now showing you behind me a snapshot in terms of what this digital hub is all about. You can see here that it covers regulatory information like those tax concessions that we are contemplating and also the investment opportunities being available through the intermediaries, of course including Bloomberg. There are also other types of related information like the exhibitions, the art scenes in Hong Kong, etc, as highlighted by the Finance Secretary just now. But all in all, what we see is that this platform is a living platform, in a sense that it’s a carefully curated one and continuously to revolve around the needs of family offices with the overall objective to make Hong Kong the leading hub for family offices regionally and globally.
      
     Going forward, having heard what I said and what I tried to say, hopefully you are as convinced as I am that it’s something that you have to have. Here we have a QR code for all of you who are interested in taking a look at this website. Also, if you find it useful, do be our ambassador. You can share this with your clients, with your families or even with your friends if they are interested.
      
     I am sure it is only just one of the many collaborations and partnerships that the Government and also Invest Hong Kong will have with Bloomberg in Hong Kong, because there are so many synergies between what we can do here on the asset management side and also with Bloomberg. In particular with the world getting more unstable outside Hong Kong, Hong Kong as the anchor of stability and predictability actually offers the perfect fit for global and regional and even local family offices to continuously to be situated here. So I do urge you to continue to stay attuned to many of our offerings. If any of your friends or your stakeholders are interested in setting up family offices in Hong Kong, do reach out to our Invest Hong Kong team, which you can also contact through this QR code, in such a way that helps me meet my personal KPI of getting 200 single family offices to Hong Kong by the end of this year. Thank you very much.

    

     The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, attended the Opening Plenary of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2025 in Hainan today (March 27) and met with the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Dr Qu Dongyu.

     In the morning, Mr Lee attended the Opening Plenary of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2025. The theme of this year’s conference is “Asia in the Changing World: Towards a Shared Future”.

     Member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier Mr Ding Xuexiang delivered a keynote speech at the event. In his speech, Vice Premier Ding highlighted the vision of building an Asian community of common destiny proposed by President Xi Jinping a decade ago, which has since made remarkable progress thanks to the collective efforts of all parties. In the face of growing global uncertainties, Vice Premier Ding put forward “four proposals” to create a brighter future for Asia and the world, namely to strengthen solidarity and co-operation through enhanced mutual trust, to advance economic globalisation through openness and integration, to foster prosperity through promoting mutual benefit, and to safeguard harmony and stability through peaceful coexistence.

     Mr Lee said that he was most encouraged by Vice Premier Ding’s speech. He emphasised that under the principle of “one country, two systems”, Hong Kong is the world’s only open economy that enjoys both the China advantage and the global advantage. He noted that amidst geopolitical shifts, and the emergence of protectionism and unilateralism, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government remains a staunch advocate of free trade and multilateralism. With its commitment to consolidating resilience against challenges, Hong Kong is the best platform for foreign enterprises entering the Mainland market and for Mainland companies expanding globally. Mr Lee said that with the nation’s support, Hong Kong will further deepen international exchanges and co-operation. Hong Kong will work alongside the country and Asian nations to enhance mutual trust and solidarity, openness and integration, and mutual benefits and peaceful coexistence, driving Asia’s economic growth and advancing global economic integration.

     Vice Premier Ding also shared his “three views” on the country’s economic trajectory. He said that China’s economy remains stable, with a consolidated upward trend; innovation-driven development continues to gain momentum, propelling China’s economic transformation; and China is further deepening reform comprehensively and enhancing its business environment. Vice Premier Ding noted that the country’s economic growth target of around 5 per cent this year is underpinned by strong growth potential, favourable conditions and robust policy measures, and that the country is devoted to achieving its national economic and social development goals for the year.

     Mr Lee stated that these views reinforce global confidence in China’s economic future. He stressed that the more complicated and volatile the external environment becomes, the more steadfastly should Hong Kong leverage its distinctive advantage of having strong support from the motherland and close connection with the world to promote economic development and integrate into the overall development of the country. The HKSAR Government should endeavour to break new ground and continue to promote reforms, uphold the principle of developing new quality productive forces tailored to local conditions, and accelerate the development of an international innovation and technology centre. It will also further consolidate and enhance the city’s status as an international financial, shipping and trade centre; actively build Hong Kong into an international hub for high-calibre talent; adopt an innovative mindset in taking forward the development of the Northern Metropolis and the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone developments together with market forces; and further promote the high-quality development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, actively integrating into national development. At the same time, the HKSAR Government will strengthen collaboration with Asian countries to explore diversified economic co-operation, jointly creating a prosperous future and contributing to regional stability and the economic development of both the country and Asia.

     Before attending the Opening Plenary, Mr Lee met with the Director-General of the FAO, Dr Qu Dongyu, to exchange views on enhancing co-operation between the HKSAR Government and the FAO. Noting that the HKSAR Government is actively leveraging Hong Kong’s stringent food safety standards and good reputation in the food sector, Mr Lee said that Hong Kong strives to become a hub for food processing and the international food trade, with a view to enhancing the value of high-quality agricultural and fishery products from the Mainland and promoting them to global markets.

     Mr Lee said that he looked forward to further exchanges between the HKSAR Government and the FAO on areas including the upgrading and transformation of the agricultural and fisheries industries, addressing climate change and the development of a green city, in order to make contributions to global food safety and sustainable development. He mentioned that as an international metropolis, Hong Kong has world-class hotels and conference venues, and gathers renowned academic institutions and experts. Mr Lee said that he welcomed the FAO to consider holding meetings in Hong Kong, and the HKSAR Government will be pleased to provide assistance.

     Mr Lee will return to Hong Kong this evening.