Author Archives: hksar gov

     The Secretary for Justice, Mr Paul Lam, SC, will depart for Malaysia tomorrow (February 16) to attend the China Conference: Southeast Asia and relevant activities to be held in Kuala Lumpur the next day.      &… read more

     The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, and his wife, Mrs Janet Lee, today (February 15) visited Hong Kong Ocean Park to attend the Giant Panda Twin Cubs Greeting Ceremony.

     Other officiating guests include the Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), Mr Zheng Yanxiong; Deputy Commissioner of the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in HKSAR Mr Pan Yundong; Deputy Commander-in-chief of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison Mr Tan Zhiwei; the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Miss Rosanna Law; and the Chairman of the Board of the Ocean Park Corporation (OPC), Mr Paulo Pong. Before the ceremony, the officiating guests visited the giant panda twins cubs which will soon make their public debut as well as their mother Ying Ying at the Giant Panda Adventure, and celebrated the sixth-month birthday of the cubs.

     Mr Lee expressed heartfelt gratitude to the experts of the China Conservation and Research Centre for the Giant Panda and the animal care team of Ocean Park for taking excellent care of the giant panda twin cubs round the clock and provide professional postnatal care to Ying Ying after her giving birth to the cubs. He said, “Ying Ying, the mother of the twin cubs is on record the world’s oldest giant panda to give birth for the first time. The birth of the twin cubs not only solidifies the outstanding achievements of our country in giant panda conservation, but also demonstrates the OPC’s leading position as an important conservation and education base in Hong Kong. With our country’s efforts over the years, giant pandas have been downgraded from ‘Endangered’ to ‘Vulnerable’ on the global list of species at risk of extinction. This represents the success of our country’s conservation work in this area. Together with our country, the HKSAR Government will continue to advance and promote conservation of giant pandas and thereby tell the good stories of our country, Hong Kong and the giant pandas.”

     Besides, Mr Lee announced at the ceremony the launch of the Giant Panda Twin Cubs Naming Competition organised by the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and co-organised by the OPC begins today. At present, members of the public are calling the twin cubs “Elder Sister” and “Little Brother”. These affectionate names will be retained as their nicknames. Hong Kong residents are encouraged to suggest a pair of names for the twin cubs through observing their physical features and characteristics, as well as the interaction between the cubs and their daily lives. The competition is open for entries from noon today to March 7. Results will be announced in the first half of this year and winners will be notified individually by correspondence. For details of the competition, including terms and conditions, means for submission of entries, judging criteria, etc., please visit Ocean Park’s dedicated website at www.oceanpark.com.hk/en/park-experience/giant-panda-twin-cubs-naming-competition.

     The pigeon pair of giant panda cubs was born on August 15 of last year and their parents are Ying Ying and Le Le, the giant pandas gifted by the Central People’s Government to the HKSAR in 2007. They are also the first pair of giant pandas born in Hong Kong. Over the past six months, the cubs have grown healthily from around 120g at birth to more than 12kg now. They are also adapting well at the Giant Panda Adventure, their habitat at Ocean Park.

     Starting from tomorrow (February 16), the public can visit the lovely twin cubs at Ocean Park in person and at the same time drop by the other four members of the Hong Kong giant panda family, namely, Ying Ying, Le Le, An An and Ke Ke.

                

     The Education Bureau held the National Geography Fun Fair today (February 15). The Under Secretary for Education, Dr Sze Chun-fai, officiated at the opening ceremony and presented awards to schools and students who actively participated in the Geography Online Game Platform for Understanding Our Motherland developed by the Education Bureau.
 
     The fun fair was co-organised by the Education Bureau and the Hong Kong Geographical Association, and supported by the Department of Social Sciences and Policy Studies of the Education University of Hong Kong, the Department of Geography of the University of Hong Kong, the Department of Geography and Resource Management of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Department of Geography of the Hong Kong Baptist University.
 
     The fun fair, held at Lok Fu Place, aims to enhance students’ and the public’s understanding of national geography, as well as the developments and achievements of the country through display boards and booth games, thereby heightening the sense of national identity and national pride.
 
     Speaking at the opening ceremony of the fun fair, Dr Sze pointed out that national geography education is an important element of national education. The study of national geography can help students understand the various geographical situations currently faced by the country and the world, the uniqueness of different regions in the country, and the interrelationships between the country and other nations. It can also assist students to extend their concern for geographical situations from a local and national scale to a global scale, enabling them to become responsible citizens with a global perspective. The opening ceremony also showcased the Education Bureau’s continued support and promotion of national geography education.
 
     There were eight booth games and display boards in the fun fair to let students and the public understand the country’s administrative divisions, natural environment, the relationship between climate and daily life, exotic animals, tourist attractions, historical sites, energy and sustainable development, etc. The participants were engaged and excited. They said they felt that it was easier to learn about national geography through interaction and games, and that their impressions were more profound.
 
     The Education Bureau will continue to develop learning and teaching resources and organise teacher training and student activities to enhance students’ understanding of the country, thereby fostering their sense of belonging, national identification and responsibility towards it.

    

     The Government announced today (February 15) the reappointment of 10 incumbent non-official members, as well as the appointment of Dr Rocky Cheng as a new member, to the Advisory Committee on Attracting Strategic Enterprises (Adviso… read more

Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:      Here is an item of interest to swimmers.      The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced toda… read more