The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (November 22) that in view of a notification from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs of Korea about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Gangjin-gun of Jeollanam-do Province in Korea, and notifications from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) about outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Friesland Province in the Netherlands and the District of Nienburg (Weser) in the State of Niedersachsen in Germany, the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from the above-mentioned areas with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

     A CFS spokesman said that according to the Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong imported about 10 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and 280,000 poultry eggs from Korea, about 730 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from the Netherlands and about 430 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and about 800,000 poultry eggs from Germany in the first nine months of this year.

     "The CFS has contacted the Korean, Dutch and German authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE and the relevant authorities on the avian influenza outbreaks. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesman said.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
 
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), as representative of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSAR Government), announced today (November 22) that a tender of 5-year Government Bonds (Bonds) through the re-opening of existing 10-year Government Bond issue 10GB2706 under the Institutional Bond Issuance Programme will be held on December 1, for settlement on December 2.

     An additional amount of HK$2.5 billion of the outstanding 10-year Bonds (issue number 10GB2706) will be on offer. The Bonds will mature on June 29, 2027 and will carry interest at the rate of 1.25 per cent per annum payable semi-annually in arrears. The Indicative Pricings of the Bonds on November 22 is 100.47 with an annualised yield of 1.167 per cent.

     Under the Institutional Bond Issuance Programme, tender is open only to Recognized Dealers which are appointed as Primary Dealers. Anyone wishing to apply for the Bonds on offer can do so through any of the Primary Dealers on the current published list, which can be obtained from the Government Bond Programme's website at www.hkgb.gov.hk. Each tender must be for an amount of HK$50,000 or integral multiples thereof.

     Tender results will be published on the HKMA's website, the Government Bond Programme's website, the Refinitiv screen (HKGBINDEX), and Bloomberg (GBHK <GO>) not later than 3pm on the tender day.

HKSAR Government Institutional Bond Issuance Programme tender information
—————————————————————————————–
     Tender information of re-opening of 10-year Government Bonds under the Institutional Bond Issuance Programme:
 

 
Price/Yield Table of the re-opening Government Bonds at tender for reference* only:
 

 
* Disclaimer
 
The information provided here is for reference only. Although extreme care has been taken to ensure that the information provided is accurate and up-to-date, the HKMA does not warrant that all, or any part of, the information provided is accurate in all respects. Persons are encouraged to conduct their own enquiries to verify any particular piece of information provided on it. The HKMA shall not be liable for any loss or damage suffered as a result of any use or reliance on any of the information provided here.

     The Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre (HKVAC) is staging the exhibition "Centrifugal Art Force – Digital Ink Painting and Animation of Wong Chung Yu" from today (November 22). Featuring 14 digital ink paintings and animations by Hong Kong artist Wong Chung-yu, the exhibition presents the impeccable union of digital technology and ink painting.
 
     Wong Chung-yu has practised ink art for 20 years, exploring ways to reinterpret classical culture through the adoption of contemporary approaches. Integrating the knowledge that he has acquired from his experience in digital art practice, Wong has developed and published an ink painting program called "Pure ink" with free downloads in the hope of promoting digital ink art as widely as possible. The paintings featured in this exhibition were created with the "Pure ink" program and were exported through the high-resolution output function integrated into the software. The output images were then printed on xuan (rice) paper with the application of the giclee printing technique. The animations on display were produced with the diffusion system of the software, showing the variations and forces in the ink between condensed and diluted states and between wet and dry conditions.
 
     The exhibition will run from today until December 6 at the Exhibition Hall of the HKVAC at 7A Kennedy Road, Central. A talk entitled "Art Talk – Centrifugal Art Force – Digital Ink Painting and Animation of Wong Chung Yu" will be held at the Lecture Theatre of the HKVAC on November 27 (Saturday). Wong will discuss his experience ranging from contemporary ink painting to digital technology application, and show the possibilities of ink painting and digital technology in "Pure ink". For details of the exhibition and the art talk, please visit the website at www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/APO/en_US/web/apo/va_centrifugal_art_force.html or call 3101 2770.
 
     All persons will be required to use the "LeaveHomeSafe" mobile application to scan the venue QR code before they are allowed to enter offices and venues under the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD), except for exempted persons who are aged below 12 or aged 65 or above and those with disabilities that render use of the app difficult. Exemptions will also be granted to individual persons depending on the actual circumstances. All exempted persons are required to complete a record form to register their personal particulars and the date and time of their visit. As it will take time to verify personal particulars of exempted persons under the new arrangement, their waiting time for using public services or entering the relevant venues may be lengthened. The LCSD suggests that members of the public should arrive early and appeals for their understanding. The department also encourages the exempted persons to use the app as far as possible to save time.

              

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

     The Hospital Authority (HA) will extend the special visiting arrangement for child and adolescent psychiatric patients of public hospitals from this Friday (November 26) (see table below).
 
     The spokesperson for the HA said today (November 22) that the extended special visiting arrangement is applicable for visiting child and adolescent psychiatric patients who are below the age of 18 and have been transferred out of observation areas. With regard to vaccination requirement, as in the special visiting arrangement implemented in acute and specialist hospitals, family members of child and adolescent psychiatric patients are required to have completed two-dose COVID-19 vaccination for more than 14 days, so as to minimise the risk of infection for patients and staff in the hospitals. 
 
     "Ward staff will schedule the visits and begin calling the patients' family members in the next few days. One to two visits will be arranged for one family member in a designated time slot each week with due consideration to the clinical condition of the patient and the operation of individual wards. All visits have to be arranged and scheduled by the ward staff," the spokesperson added. 
 
     "Visitors can scan the Hospital Visit QR code, which can be found in the HA webpage and the 'HA Go' mobile app, to fill in the health declaration form within 24 hours before the visit and must show the QR code generated by the system to the ward staff."
 
     The HA hopes the patients' family members can understand the limitations of the visiting arrangements under the current epidemic situation. All hospitals will continue to facilitate compassionate and video visiting as far as practicable. The HA will also closely monitor the situation to consider extending the special visiting arrangement to other psychiatric patients in due course.
 
     The spokesperson reiterated that all visitors entering public hospitals are required to comply with the infection control measures, such as wearing surgical masks, temperature checking and filling in health declaration forms. In addition, visitors need to scan the "LeaveHomeSafe" venue QR code when entering public hospitals, except for exempted persons (including persons who are aged below 12 or aged 65 or above, those with disabilities that render use of the app difficult and individual persons granted exemptions due to actual circumstances can complete a record form as registration).
 
     The psychiatric wards for child and adolescent psychiatric patients included in the special visiting arrangement are listed in the following table:
 

     â€‹Following is the video speech by the Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, at China Global Television Network's programme "InnoBay 2021" today (November 22):
 
Ladies and gentlemen,
 
     It gives me great pleasure to speak at the opening of the "Inno Bay 2021" programme co-organised by China Global Television Network (CGTN) and Hong Kong X Foundation. I like very much the name of this programme – "Inno Bay" succinctly captures the ambition of developing an international innovation and technology (I&T) hub in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and echoes the point that innovation and reform is one of the basic principles in driving the Greater Bay Area, as enshrined in the Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area promulgated in February 2019.
      
     As a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong is one of the core cities in the 9+2 Greater Bay Area, comprising nine cities in the Guangdong province as well as the two Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macao. Leveraging unique advantages under "One Country, Two Systems" and high quality research in our universities, with five of them amongst the world's top 100, and our excellent technology infrastructure which was recently ranked the world's No. 2 by the IMD world digital competitiveness index, as well as being the world's No. 2 platform for the listing of biotech companies, Hong Kong is well positioned to make significant contributions to the Greater Bay Area's I&T goal.
      
     To enhance our global competitiveness, my Government has made unprecedented efforts in I&T development in Hong Kong. Over the past four years, we have invested nearly US$17 billion in technology infrastructure and research and development, as well as in nurturing talents. It is gratifying to see that the I&T ecosystem in Hong Kong has become increasingly vibrant, with Hong Kong being the birthplace of 12 unicorns already. Indeed, we can count 18 unicorns with strong links to Hong Kong, according to the Hong Kong X Foundation.
      
     That determination for Hong Kong to succeed and significant efforts made in recent years have not gone unnoticed by the Central Government. Memoranda of co-operation have been entered into with the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Hong Kong research projects have received national funding and joint research laboratories have been set up in the Hong Kong Science Park on top of the 16 State Key Laboratories in Hong Kong. All these have culminated in express support for Hong Kong to develop into an International innovation and technology hub in the nation's 14th Five-Year Plan promulgated in March this year, which also includes the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Loop as one of the four major platforms of co-operation in the Greater Bay Area.
      
     I am grateful for the nation's support, and together with our local I&T sector, we are determined to play to our strengths. Therefore, in my 2021 Policy Address delivered on October 6, I outlined enhanced measures to enrich Hong Kong's I&T ecosystem, including supporting our universities to build more laboratory facilities, recruiting more research talents, giving more impetus to re-industrialisation and collaborating more closely with Shenzhen. In particular, we plan to develop an InnoLife Healthtech Hub in the Hong Kong-Shenzhen I&T Park, as the COVID-19 pandemic has reminded us of the importance of life sciences to humankind. We are confident that this is an area Hong Kong could play a pivotal role in the Greater Bay Area and beyond.
      
     I am sure you will hear more about our plans from speakers participating in this programme. Let me end by thanking Hong Kong X Foundation and the CGTN for putting together this meaningful event. Thank you.