The Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Cheuk Wing-hing, chaired the sixth meeting of the Task Force on District Governance (TFDG) today (November 22) to continuously follow up on the implementation progress of eight district initiatives in accordance with the overall strategies set by the Steering Committee on District Governance (SCDG), chaired by the Chief Secretary for Administration.
Mr Cheuk said, "The TFDG fully supervises all departments to actively follow up on the implementation of various district initiatives as assigned by the SCDG, in order to enhance the capabilities and efficacy of district governance as well as promote the well-being of society. All departments will continue to adhere to the mission of addressing people's needs and achieving practical benefits for the public by actively following up on various district issues with a view to fostering a greater sense of fulfilment, happiness and security among the people."
The SCDG chaired by the Chief Secretary for Administration has formulated strategies in relation to the eight district issues, covering different areas including support of children and the elderly, environmental hygiene, law and order, road safety, pedestrian facilities and estate environment, as well as digital inclusion. The TFDG continued to follow up on the implementation details and progress of the eight district issues at the meeting, including:
1. Expanding after-school care service and enhancing support for parents
The School-based After School Care Service Scheme has been expanded to cover over 110 primary schools in 18 districts in the 2024-25 school year. As of end-October, 113 primary schools have participated in the scheme with over 5 000 beneficiary students.
2. Caring for the elderly and enhancing community support
In respect of caring for the elderly, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department has provided suitable fitness equipment for senior citizens at 23 leisure venues to encourage the elderly to exercise more. In addition, they will organise approximately 80 free sessions of Briefing on Outdoor Fitness Training for about 2 000 participants, mainly targeting the elderly, at the fitness corners of 18 parks in 2024-25.
Under the Social Welfare Department's pilot scheme, as of October, the District Services and Community Care Teams of Tsuen Wan District and Southern District have visited and contacted more than 5 600 households of singleton and doubleton elderly persons, as well as carers of elderly persons and persons with disabilities; and have referred needy cases to relevant social welfare units for follow-up.
3. Fostering clean markets and mobilising the community to participate in anti-rodent work
To improve the environment of public markets, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) is expediting toilet enhancement projects in public markets or cooked food markets, with a view to completing 23 enhancement projects by end-2025.
Furthermore, the pilot scheme on stall improvement at the Queen Street Cooked Food Market was completed in September this year. The reopened Cooked Food Market has attracted more customers and has received positive feedback from stall tenants and the public. The FEHD will continue to identify other suitable venues for stall improvement work.
4. Enhancing public order and combating crimes on all fronts
To enhance public safety, the Police plan to first install closed-circuit television (CCTV) at locations with a higher crime rate and pedestrian flow across districts in order to serve as a deterrent against street crimes and as an aid in their investigation. From April this year until now, the Police has completed the installation of over 550 sets of CCTV in various districts, which has assisted them to quickly solve 70 criminal cases and has achieved a significant impact on fighting crime. The Police will continue to enhance the use of technology to strengthen their efforts in fighting and preventing crime. The target is to complete installing 2 000 sets of CCTV in 2025.
To combat deception cases, the Police, in collaboration with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, has extended the coverage of the Suspicious Account Alert for Internet banking and physical branches transactions since August 2024, for providing enhanced protection to customers against rising fraud risks.
5. Improving pedestrian facilities and ensuring road safety
The Highways Department (HyD) has completed the repaving of 37 footpath sections, and will finish the repaving of the other three footpath sections before the end of this year. The HyD plans to expand the repaving work to an additional 40 footpath sections starting next year. The Transport Department has also completed the installation of auxiliary pedestrian crossing devices with red light-beam projections at 97 pedestrian crossing black spots in various districts.
6. Enhancing the walking experience for citizens and creating a pedestrian-friendly environment
The HyD is conducting renovation and beautification works for 36 footbridges and pedestrian subways, and works for nine structures have been completed. The HyD has also completed the installation of bench railings for citizens to sit and rest at 10 suitable locations on a trial basis. The HyD will continue to identify suitable locations for installing these bench railings next year.
7. Improving the environment of public housing estates and creating comfortable homes
To improve the environment of public housing estates, the Housing Department has commenced phased enhancement works for areas within 15 public rental housing estates, including improvement to peripheral environment and installation of suitable facilities.
8. Caring for the elderly and promoting digital inclusion
The Digital Policy Office (DPO) has completed the approval of project proposals submitted by institutions/organisations for the Digital Inclusion Programme for the Elderlies, with a view to commencing the first batch of projects by the end of this year. The entire programme targets to benefit at least 100 000 elderly persons. The DPO will launch a city-wide promotion campaign to encourage the elderly to actively engage in digital living.
Mr Cheuk thanked the departments for their dedicated efforts in advancing the above work and achieving good progress. He urged departments to continue actively following up on various livelihood issues and to strengthen their work on district management, with a view to addressing people's concerns and responding to their needs through practical actions.
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