Author Archives: hksar gov

     The Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, officiated at the Hong Kong Talent Engage (HKTE) Office Opening Ceremony this afternoon (October 30) and witnessed with leaders of various trades and partners the official establishment of HKTE, a new milestone of the Government’s endeavours to trawl for and retain talent.

     Addressing the opening ceremony, Mr Chan said, “To create strong impetus for Hong Kong’s growth, the current-term Government boldly and innovatively formulated an array of measures to trawl for talent. They included the establishment of the HKTE online platform, the newly introduced Top Talent Pass Scheme, and enhancements to various existing talent admission schemes by the end of last year to proactively attract talent around the world to Hong Kong.

     “Our results speak for themselves. In the first nine months of this year, some 160 000 applications in total were received under the various talent admission schemes, with over 100 000 of them approved. Around 60 000 talents so far have had their visas approved to come to Hong Kong, far exceeding our key performance indicator of drawing at least 35 000 talents per year.”

     Mr Chan added that “The Chief Executive’s 2023 Policy Address” fully adopted the prevailing strategy of trawling for and retaining talent. Further measures were rolled out, including expanding the coverage of universities under the Top Talent Pass Scheme, relaxing visa requirements, and introducing a stamp duty suspension arrangement for incoming talent acquisition of residential properties. He stressed he had full confidence that HKTE, together with the array of measures to trawl for and retain talent, would help develop Hong Kong into an international talent hub and make new contributions to the country’s high-quality development.

     Mr Chan; the Convenor of the Non-official Members of the Executive Council, Mrs Regina Ip; the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun; the Permanent Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Ms Alice Lau; the Director-General of the Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises, Mr Philip Yung; the Deputy Secretary for Labour and Welfare (Manpower), Ms Angelina Kwan; and the Director of HKTE, Mr Anthony Lau, jointly officiated at the launching ceremony, which marked the official commencement of the HKTE’s operation.

     In addition, invited talent from the Mainland and overseas shared at the opening ceremony their experiences of pursuing their careers in Hong Kong as well as their insights into the city’s future development. Also attending the opening ceremony today included Legislative Council members and representatives of advisory bodies, the business sector, professional associations, non-governmental organisations and the HKTE’s designated partners.

     “The Chief Executive’s 2023 Policy Address” announced the establishment of HKTE, which serves as the designated agency to formulate talent attraction strategies and provide support services for talent in Hong Kong. HKTE will aim at assisting talent in their long-term development in Hong Kong and formulate targeted recruitment and publicity strategies for different talent groups. HKTE will also collaborate with the Dedicated Teams for Attracting Businesses and Talents under the Government’s Mainland Offices and overseas Economic and Trade Offices in carrying out proactive external promotions of Hong Kong, so as to attract more talent to come to Hong Kong to pursue development.

     Furthermore, HKTE will reach out to recruit partners for rendering appropriate support, through physical and online activities as well as services, to those talent interested in coming to Hong Kong or those who have just arrived in the city for their living, work, children’s education, etc to facilitate their settlement. HKTE will also keep in touch with those talent who have arrived in Hong Kong to understand their development and needs in Hong Kong, so as to gather useful references for policy review and adjustment of support services in future.

     HKTE is located on 12/F, Revenue Tower, 5 Gloucester Road, Wan Chai. Apart from visiting the office in person, incoming talent or those interested in coming to Hong Kong to pursue development can view its website (www.hkengage.gov.hk) or make enquiries with HKTE via email (enquiry@hkengage.gov.hk), LinkedIn or WeChat. Talent from around the world can also learn more about the details of the Government’s various talent admission schemes through the Dedicated Teams for Attracting Businesses and Talents under the Government’s Mainland Offices and overseas Economic and Trade Offices.

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The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority.      The spokesman for Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital made the following announcement today (October 30):        Three patients (ag… read more

     The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau, briefed members of the Trade and Industry Advisory Board on initiatives related to commerce and trade in “The Chief Executive’s 2023 Policy Address” at a meeting today (October 30).
 
     Mr Yau said that while there was a strong rebound in the middle of this year following the full resumption of normalcy early this year, Hong Kong’s economy is still facing a lot of challenges due to the change in the demand for goods affected by the external environment and interest rate hikes. In this connection, the Chief Executive has outlined a range of measures in the Policy Address to boost Hong Kong’s economy and support businesses, with a view to enhancing Hong Kong’s overall competitiveness.
 
     Stressing that the Government is committed to supporting enterprises, in particular small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), so as to help them secure a firm footing amid the difficult and volatile environment, Mr Yau briefed the members on various measures for supporting SMEs in addressing the challenges.
 
     The application period of the principal moratorium arrangement under the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme ended last month, and some enterprises have already resumed normal repayment, with the principal moratorium arrangement of the remaining loans expiring gradually by the end of next year. Having regard to the cash flow situations of different enterprises, the Government will provide more flexible repayment options so that enterprises may choose to repay only 10 per cent, 20 per cent or 50 per cent of the original principal amount payable each month during the specified period, enabling them to have more time to gradually switch to normal repayment.
 
     The Government will also establish the E-commerce Development Task Force to implement policies assisting SMEs in developing e-commerce business, such as organising Hong Kong Shopping Festivals on e-commerce platforms and launching “E-commerce Easy” under the Dedicated Fund on Branding, Upgrading and Domestic Sales to provide funding support for SMEs’ implementation of e-commerce projects, with a view to promoting brand awareness of Hong Kong products for developing the Mainland domestic sales market.
 
     In addition, the Government suggested raising the statutory cap on the contingent liability of the Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Corporation (ECIC) from $55 billion to $80 billion to enhance its underwriting capacity. The ECIC will also upgrade its free credit check services for policyholders regarding buyers from the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, giving exporters more confidence in accepting overseas orders.
 
     Mr Yau highlighted that the Government will proactively explore emerging markets to create impetus for Hong Kong’s economic growth by organising promotional programmes and networking sessions, business missions to Belt and Road countries and visits to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area for overseas enterprises operating in Hong Kong. The Government will also set up additional offices for business and trade along the Belt and Road to strengthen trade promotional efforts in emerging countries. Hong Kong at the same time will continue to seek to forge free trade agreements and investment promotion and protection agreements with more economies.
 
     Meanwhile, Mr Yau updated the members on the Government’s work on attracting enterprises and investment. The Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises set up last year has reached out to over 200 enterprises, of which 30 are planning to establish their foothold or expand their operations in Hong Kong. A total of about $30 billion of new investment is involved. In the first nine months of this year, Invest Hong Kong assisted over 300 Mainland and overseas enterprises in establishing or expanding their operations in Hong Kong, representing an increase of more than 25 per cent over the same period last year.
 
     Mr Yau said that despite the difficulties facing the global economy, Hong Kong will be able to overcome the challenges with its strong resilience and adaptability, and will also better integrate into the national development, to enable the economy to move forward.

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The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
 
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) wishes to alert members of the public to a press release issued by Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited relating to fraudulent websites and internet banking login screens, which have been reported to the HKMA. A hyperlink to the press release is available on the HKMA website.
      
     The HKMA wishes to remind the public that banks will not send SMS or emails with embedded hyperlinks which direct them to the banks’ websites to carry out transactions. They will not ask customers for sensitive personal information, such as login passwords or one-time password, by phone, email or SMS (including via embedded hyperlinks).
      
     Anyone who has provided his or her personal information, or who has conducted any financial transactions, through or in response to the websites or login screens concerned, should contact the bank using the contact information provided in the press release, and report the matter to the Police by contacting the Crime Wing Information Centre of the Hong Kong Police Force at 2860 5012. read more

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health today (October 30) reported the latest number of cases of Legionnaires’ disease (LD), and stressed the importance of using and maintaining properly designed man-made water systems, adding that susceptible groups should strictly observe relevant precautions.
 
     From October 22 to 28, three LD cases were reported:
 
1. A male patient, aged 58 with underlying illnesses, who lives in Wai On Building, 2 Wai Yan Street, Tai Po. It was classified as a community-acquired case;
2. A male patient, aged 73 with underlying illnesses, who passed away on October 29. He had been to Mainland China during the incubation period and was classified as an imported case; and
3. A male patient, aged 66 with underlying illnesses, who lives in Tak King House, Tak Tin Estate, Lam Tin. He was hospitalised due to his clinical conditions during the incubation period.

     “Epidemiological investigations are ongoing to identify potential sources of infection, high-risk exposure and clusters, if any,” a spokesman for the CHP said.
 
     As of October 28, 106 LD cases had been reported this year. In 2022 and 2021, there were 80 and 69 cases respectively.
 
     “Men, people aged over 50, smokers, alcoholics and persons with weakened immunity are more susceptible to LD. Some situations may also increase the risk of infection, including poor maintenance of water systems leading to stagnant water; living in areas with old water systems, cooling towers or fountains; using electric water heaters, whirlpools and spas or hot water spring spas; and recent stays in hotels or vessels,” the spokesman said.
 
     Legionellae are found in various environmental settings and grow well in warm water (20 to 45 degrees Celsius). They can be found in aqueous environments such as water tanks, hot and cold water systems, cooling towers, whirlpools and spas, water fountains and home apparatus that support breathing. People may become infected when they breathe in contaminated droplets (aerosols) and mist generated by artificial water systems, or when handling garden soil, compost and potting mixes.
 
     Immunocompromised persons should:
 

• Use sterile or boiled water for drinking, tooth brushing and mouth rinsing;
• Avoid using humidifiers, or other mist- or aerosol-generating devices. A shower may also generate small aerosols; and
• If using humidifiers, or other mist- or aerosol-generating devices, fill the water tank with only sterile or cooled freshly boiled water, and not water directly from the tap. Also, clean and maintain humidifiers/devices regularly according to manufacturers’ instructions. Never leave stagnant water in a humidifier/device. Empty the water tank, wipe all surfaces dry, and change the water daily. 

    
     The public should observe the health advice below:
 

• Observe personal hygiene;
• Do not smoke and avoid alcohol consumption;
• Strainers in water taps and shower heads should be inspected, cleaned, descaled and disinfected regularly or at a frequency recommended by the manufacturer;
• If a fresh-water plumbing system is properly maintained, it is not necessary to install domestic water filters. Use of water filters is not encouraged as clogging occurs easily, which can promote growth of micro-organisms. In case water filters are used, the pore size should be 0.2 micrometres (µm) and the filter needs to be changed periodically according to the manufacturer’s recommendations;
• Drain and clean water tanks of buildings at least quarterly;
• Drain or purge for at least one minute infrequently used water outlets (e.g. water taps, shower heads and hot water outlets) and stagnant points of the pipework weekly or before use;
• Seek and follow doctors’ professional advice regarding the use and maintenance of home respiratory devices and use only sterile water (not distilled or tap water) to clean and fill the reservoir. Clean and maintain the device regularly according to the manufacturer’s instructions. After cleaning/disinfection, rinse the device with sterile water, cooled freshly boiled water or water filtered with 0.2 µm filters. Never leave stagnant water in the device. Empty the water tank, keep all surfaces dry, and change the water daily; and
• When handling garden soil, compost and potting mixes: 

1. Wear gloves and a face mask;
2. Water gardens and compost gently using low pressure;
3. Open composted potting mixes slowly and make sure the opening is directed away from the face;
4. Wet the soil to reduce dust when potting plants; and
5. Avoid working in poorly ventilated places such as enclosed greenhouses.

     The public may visit the CHP’s LD page, the Code of Practice for Prevention of LD and the Housekeeping Guidelines for Cold and Hot Water Systems for Building Management of the Prevention of LD Committee, and the CHP’s risk-based strategy for prevention and control of LD.  read more