Author Archives: hksar gov

     â€‹Hongkong Post announced today (March 3) that a new set of “2025 Hong Kong Definitive Stamps” and associated philatelic products on the theme of Hong Kong landmarks will be released for sale on March 18 (Tuesday).
      
     The “2025 Hong Kong Definitive Stamps” is the fifth set of definitive stamps issued by Hongkong Post since the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China. This set of definitive stamps introduces famous landmarks in Hong Kong through a set of 16 stamps. The landmarks include the Hong Kong Palace Museum, the International Finance Centre, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, Lai Chi Wo, etc, demonstrating the uniqueness and charm of Hong Kong as an international financial hub and an East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchanges. The stamps showcase the stunning landscapes of Hong Kong and depict the city’s important infrastructure developments and conservation achievements. The definitive stamps are available in a full range of denominations, providing the public with convenience in combining the stamps for daily use when posting mail items.
      
     In parallel, the “2014 Hong Kong Definitive Stamps” on the theme of the Hong Kong Global Geopark of China will continue to be on sale while stocks last. A special souvenir pack will be released to commemorate the concurrent sale of two sets of Hong Kong definitive stamps.
      
     Official first day covers for “2025 Hong Kong Definitive Stamps” will be on sale at all post offices and Hongkong Post’s online shopping mall ShopThruPost (shopthrupost.hongkongpost.hk) from tomorrow (March 4), while postcards will be available at philatelic offices only. This set of definitive stamps and associated philatelic products will be on sale at all post offices and ShopThruPost from March 18, while serviced first day covers affixed with the definitive stamps, souvenir packs and maximum cards will be available at philatelic offices only. Stamp booklets will be on sale at all post offices (except mobile post offices) from March 18 to 24, and available at convenience stores and other non-post office outlets from March 24.
      
     A hand-back date-stamping service will be provided on March 18 at all post offices for official first day covers/souvenir covers/privately made covers bearing the first day of issue indication and a local address.
      
     In addition, to bring new excitement and enhance the commemoration, Hongkong Post will launch the “2025 Hong Kong Definitive Stamps” cachets which consist of 16 designs concurrently on the issue date of March 18 of the new definitive stamps. The full set of cachets will be set up at four post offices, namely the General Post Office, the Sha Tin Central Post Office, the Tsim Sha Tsui Post Office and the Tsuen Wan Post Office, as well as in the Postal Gallery at the Hongkong Post Building. In addition, six of these cachets will be available in the five designated post offices, with details in the Appendix.

     Information about this set of definitive stamps, associated philatelic products and cachets is available on the Hongkong Post Stamps website (stamps.hongkongpost.hk).

                  

     The 2025 Hong Kong Youth Music Camp, organised by the Music Office of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, will be held between July and August to offer training for young musicians and choir members by highly acclaimed musicians. Participants can also join the in-camp music masterclasses and workshops. The music camps are categorised into residential and non-residential groups. Applications are open today (March 3), and qualified youths aged between 8 and 25 are welcome to join.
 
     Camp A provides in-camp residential training at the Sai Kung Outdoor Recreation Centre for music groups of Chinese Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra and Children’s Choir from July 28 to August 2. Camp fees for local campers and non-local campers are $2,100 and $3,100 respectively. Camp conductors are the Concertmaster and Resident Conductor of Chinese Orchestra of Xi’an Conservatory of Music, Gao Wei; the Music Director of the Northwest Symphony Orchestra, Dr Anthony Spain; and Professor in Choral Conducting and Head of the Conducting Department at Bulgarian National Academy of Music, Professor Theodora Pavlovitch. 
 
     Camp B provides non-residential training at designated music centres of the Music Office for groups of Junior Chinese Orchestra, Junior String Orchestra and Junior Symphonic Band from August 4 to 9. The camp fee for both local and non-local campers is $1,100. Assistant Conductor of the Wuxi Chinese Orchestra Guo Pan, internationally acclaimed cello virtuoso and music educator Chu Yi-bing, and former Head of Open Conservatorium at the Queensland Conservatorium of Griffith University Dr Ralph Hultgren will be the camp conductors.
 
     Participants in the music camps will perform at the concert halls of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre on August 3, and Hong Kong City Hall on August 10 respectively to showcase the achievements of their training. Tickets of the concerts will be available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk) from May 16.
 
     For information on applicants’ eligibility and application details, please visit the Music Office’s website (www.lcsd.gov.hk/musicoffice). The application deadline is March 28. For enquiries, please call 3842 7773, 2598 0801 or 3842 7775. read more

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 Nanyang Commercial Bank, Limited relating to fraudulent websites, internet banking login screens and social media accounts, 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, login screens and social media accounts 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 following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     Hong Kong will host the second Hong Kong Green Week from September 8 to 12.
      
     The theme of this year is “Forging a Sustainable Future Together”. The week-long event will cover a wide array of sustainability-related topics, providing stakeholders from various regions and sectors with a platform for dialogue and collaboration.
      
     During the week, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the International Finance Corporation will co-host the anchor event, Climate Business Forum: Asia Pacific 2025. The Forum will bring together speakers at the forefront of sustainable business and finance for a deep dive into the region’s transition to low-carbon, resilient and inclusive growth. The HKMA will also co-ordinate other events such as conferences, roundtables, workshops and networking events hosted by international organisations, financial institutions, corporates, industry associations, academic institutions and others.  Event details will be announced in due course. read more

     The Controller of the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health, Dr Edwin Tsui, today (March 3) urged members of the public to support Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month by adopting a healthy lifestyle and undergoing regular screenings to prevent colorectal cancer.
      
     “The International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization has recognised March as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month every year to highlight the importance of screening for colorectal cancer, as well as to promote healthy lifestyle habits to reduce a person’s risk of developing colorectal cancer. Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer locally and the second most common cause of cancer death. In 2022, there were 5 190 newly diagnosed cases, and colorectal cancer led to 2 270 deaths. It is important for the public to be more aware of cancer prevention,” he said.

     The primary prevention of cancer is to adopt a healthy lifestyle, while screening is a tool for secondary prevention to detect and treat precancerous lesions or early-stage cancers before symptoms appear, thereby increasing the cure rate.

     “The DH encourages all asymptomatic Hong Kong residents aged between 50 and 75 to join the Government-subsidised Colorectal Cancer Screening Programme (CRCSP) as early as possible and to undergo screening tests every two years in the private sector. Participants should first attend a medical consultation provided by an enrolled primary care doctor (PCD) and receive a Faecal Immunochemical Test (FIT) screening arranged by the PCD. If the test result is positive, the participant will be referred to an enrolled colonoscopy specialist to receive a colonoscopy examination subsidised by the Government. If the test result is negative, the participant is advised to repeat the screening two years later,” Dr Tsui said.
      
     The CRCSP has been operating smoothly since its launch in 2016. Last year, there were around 86 000 new participants in the CRCSP, a record annual high since its launch. As of the end of 2024, the total number of eligible participants was approximately 510 000. A cumulative total of about 77 000 persons had positive FIT screening results, about 40 000 persons were diagnosed to have colorectal adenomas after colonoscopy examinations, and about 3 400 persons had colorectal cancer. Among the colorectal cancer cases diagnosed under the CRCSP, a preliminary analysis of around 2 400 cases has been done, and about 56 per cent of these cases were in earlier stages and therefore had a more favourable prognosis.

     The CRCSP is heavily subsidised by the Government. As of the end of 2024, around 1 090 PCDs have enrolled in the CRCSP, covering about 2 070 locations, and about 97 per cent of these locations will not charge any additional payment for the consultation or the FIT screening. Around 260 colonoscopy specialists have also joined the CRCSP. The colonoscopy specialists can only charge participants a co-payment of no more than $1,000 for providing standard colonoscopy examination services. Currently, colonoscopy examination services are available at about 780 service locations, with over 70 per cent of these locations not charging any additional payment for colonoscopy and polyp removal. 
      
     “The DH released the latest Health Behaviour Survey this January, which revealed that unhealthy but modifiable practices are common among the Hong Kong population. For example, 14.8 per cent of the adult population performed an insufficient level of physical activity, 97.0 per cent of the public had an inadequate intake of fruits and vegetables, and 2.7 per cent of the population (aged 15 or above) engaged in binge drinking at least monthly. These are important risk factors for developing common non-communicable diseases, including cancer. To prevent colorectal cancer, members of the public are encouraged to adopt healthy lifestyles and practices, including exercising regularly, eating two servings of fruits and three servings of vegetables daily, reducing the consumption of red meat and processed meat, maintaining a healthy body weight, and avoiding smoking and alcohol,” Dr Tsui added.
      
     At the same time, the Primary Healthcare Commission is actively promoting the Life Course Preventive Care Plan via District Health Centres (DHCs), DHC Expresses and family doctors. Based on the core principles of prevention-oriented and whole-person care, a personalised preventive care plan will be formulated to address the health needs of citizens across different life stages with reference to the latest evidence. Family doctors and primary healthcare professionals will collaborate to provide health advice and education on chronic disease and cancer screening, as well as healthy lifestyles according to personal factors, including recommendations on colorectal cancer screening for those aged 50 or above.
        
     For more information on the CRCSP (including eligibility criteria and the list of PCDs), please visit the DH’s thematic website www.colonscreen.gov.hk, or call 3565 6288 during office hours. read more