The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, and the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Mr Frank Chan Fan, visited Cathay Pacific City today (July 19). During the visit, they and the Chief Executive Officer of the Cathay Pacific Group, Mr Augustus Tang, and the Chief Customer and Commercial Officer of the Cathay Pacific Group, Mr Ronald Lam, jointly viewed the administering of the BioNTech vaccine to around 160 staff members of the group as arranged by the Government's outreach vaccination service.
"I am grateful to Cathay Pacific for supporting the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme. When the programme began, the aviation industry was already listed as a vaccination priority group and Cathay Pacific has actively supported the programme, and the vaccination rate of its locally based aircrew members has reached 80 per cent. However, we need more people's support to get vaccinated, not only to protect themselves and their families but also to enable society to return to normal life. I hope that more enterprises will join hands with the Government in promoting the 'Early Vaccination for All' campaign so as to help build an immune barrier in Hong Kong as soon as possible by significantly raising the vaccination rate," Mr Nip said.
Mr Chan said, "The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a significant impact on the aviation industry around the world, and the local airlines are also facing severe challenges. Vaccination is the most direct and effective way to help us ride out the epidemic. It not only protects ourselves, but also builds an immune barrier for our families and the community. Up till now, more than 70 per cent of the locally based air crew members of the local aviation sector as a whole have received at least one dose of a vaccine and the percentage amongst those of Cathay Pacific Airways is even higher. When we look at locally based pilots of the whole local aviation sector, the rate is as high as 90 per cent. The progress is encouraging. Nevertheless, it is equally important for everyone in various positions of the aviation sector to be vaccinated. I call on the aviation community to get vaccinated as soon as possible to contribute towards the recovery of the aviation industry and upholding Hong Kong's status as an international aviation hub."
Should enterprises and organisations have a sufficient number of employees who would like to get vaccinated and a suitable venue with sufficient space, they can make use of the outreach vaccination service so that their employees can be vaccinated in a more convenient way. Enterprises and groups can call the hotline for the outreach vaccination service at 3904 1490 from Monday to Friday, from 9am to 6pm, for arrangements.
There has been enthusiastic support for the outreach vaccination programme since it was launched by the Civil Service Bureau. The bureau has provided the outreach vaccination service to the Hong Kong Sports Institute, global professional services enterprises, property developers, financial institutions, the construction industry, public utilities, a property management company, universities, a theme park and a district organisation.
Mr Nip and Mr Chan expressed their gratitude to the medical team and administrative support staff of the Community Vaccination Centre at Osman Ramju Sadick Memorial Sports Centre for providing the outreach service today.
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