The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has accepted the advice of the Disaster Relief Fund Advisory Committee and approved from the Disaster Relief Fund two grants totalling $11.734 million to two agencie… read more
The Secretary for Food and Health, Professor Sophia Chan, today (May 17, Netherlands time) visited the Netherlands to learn more about the country’s latest developments in primary healthcare services.
During a visit to Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) in the morning, Professor Chan introduced details of Hong Kong’s primary healthcare development to Professor A M van Hemert, Professor Niels Chavannes, Professor Jessica Kiefte-de Jong and Professor Douwe Atsma.
“To effectively change the current focus of our healthcare services on treatment and to alleviate the pressure on public hospitals, the Government of the Hong Kong Administrative Region is committed to enhancing district-based primary healthcare services with an emphasis on medical-social collaboration and public-private partnership,” Professor Chan said.
“The Government will set up a District Health Centre (DHC) progressively in all districts in Hong Kong. The services offered in the DHCs will focus on primary, secondary and tertiary prevention, including health promotion, health assessment, chronic disease management and community rehabilitation.
“With scientific research playing a vital role in public health and primary care, I believe that the visit to LUMC will enlighten us on how DHCs can make use of scientific evidence in enhancing population health,” she said.
In the afternoon, Professor Chan visited Buurtzorg Nederland, a healthcare organisation with a nurse-led model to provide community care in the Netherlands.
At a meeting with the Chief Executive Officer of Buurtzorg Nederland, Mr Josephus Bernardus Imelda de Blok, Professor Chan said, “The roles and functions of nurses are evolving in response to the development of primary healthcare. Nurses play a crucial role in co-ordinating the services to be provided to patients in a comprehensive manner, serving as case managers in particular in primary care.
“The visit to Buurtzorg Nederland will be of great reference value to the operation model of DHCs and the primary healthcare development in Hong Kong.”
Professor Chan will depart for Geneva, Switzerland, tomorrow (May 18, Netherlands time) to attend the 72nd World Health Assembly of the World Health Organization.
Following is the speech by the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, at the 4th Hong Kong Public Relations Awards (2018) Awards Presentation Ceremony cum Gala Dinner today (May 17):
Dr John Chan (Chairperson of the Organising Committee of the 4th Hong Kong Public Relations Awards (2018)), Professor Anthony Wu (Vice-chairperson of the Organising Committee of the 4th Hong Kong Public Relations Awards (2018)), distinguished guest, ladies and gentlemen,
Good evening. It is my great honour to join you all tonight to witness the remarkable achievements of the winners of this year’s Hong Kong Public Relations Awards. First of all, I would like to extend my warmest congratulations to the Hong Kong Public Relations Professionals’ Association for another successful launch of this important presentation ceremony.
As one of the most prestigious and anticipated events in the industry, the Awards Presentation Ceremony recognises outstanding achievements and high standards of public relations professionals in the industry.
As an old saying goes, “Next to doing the right thing, the most important thing is to let people know you are doing the right thing”. No one does that more effectively and more persuasively than public relations professionals who build, maintain and manage the reputation of clients from both the private and public sectors including the government.
In fact, effective communication is the key to success for any organisations, business and government. As its name signifies, public relation is about building rapport with the public. It is about winning the hearts and minds of the people, the customers and the wider audience. This is not just about image building or “spinning” but also building trusts, understanding and customer loyalty. Of course, we must remember that, in the real world, perception is reality. Thus forms and substance must go together if we are to succeed.
Tonight, we honour this year’s highest attainments in the industry, in three separate categories, namely, public relations campaign awards, special awards covering the Grand Award of Excellence and the Creative Campaign Award, as well as two individual awards recognising young professionals and distinguished professionals of the sector.
I am most honoured to present, in just a few minutes,the Young Professional of the Year Awards to two young professionals. The Association’s efforts to nurture young practitioners for the industry echoes well with the current-​term Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government’s policy aim to provide support and create room for young people of Hong Kong so that they can fully realise their potential. Apart from the glitz and glamour, a career in public relations offers young change-makers and creative geniuses of today different exciting and challenging roles and exposure, thereby widening their horizon and opportunities for upward mobility.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am thrilled to note that the Hong Kong Public Relations Professionals’ Association has introduced a brand-new category – the Cross-boundary Communications Award for a very timely reason.The Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Greater Bay Area), announced just three months ago, heralds a new era of development in the region and across all sectors for the 11 cities, including Hong Kong and Macao SARs and nine other Guangdong cities, coming together for a cluster city development.
The Greater Bay Area represents a collective GDP worth more than US$1.6 trillion which is comparable to Australia or the Republic of Korea, and a population of over 71 million consumers in one of Mainland China’s most prosperous regions. In other words, the Greater Bay Area will be the engine to propel the region’s development, offering immense opportunities across all sectors including the public relations industry.
The HKSAR Government spares no effort in joining hands with the other 10 cities to develop the Greater Bay Area into one of the world’s economic and innovation powerhouse, allowing free flow of capital, goods and people. With the commissioning of the Hong Kong Section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and the new land boundary control point at Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai, a one-hour living circle encompassing Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao is basically formed.
Since this term of Government took office in 2017, the Central Government has introduced a series of measures to provide facilitation for Hong Kong people living, working and studying on the Mainland, in particular the measures introduced by the State Council in August last year to allow Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan residents to apply for residence permits, which has substantially enriched this living circle. I strongly encourage our public relations professionals to seize these mammoth opportunities in front of us.
On this exciting note, I would like to express my warmest gratitude to the 12 prominent members of the judging panel, headed by Professor Paul Lee, and to the Nomination Committee for the Distinguished Professional of the Year Award. Allow me also to acknowledge the generosity of the many companies and organisations involved in this year’s Awards as sponsors, supporting organisations and media partners.
I wish the Hong Kong Public Relations Professionals’ Association continuous success in promoting quality public relations experts in Hong Kong and the region, all of you a joyful evening. Thank you.
The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, and the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Patrick Nip, continued their visit to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area cities in Zhaoqing and Jiangmen today (May 17).
In the morning, accompanied by the Secretary of the CPC Zhaoqing Municipal Committee, Mr Lai Zehua, and the Mayor of the Zhaoqing Municipal Government, Mr Fan Zhongjie, Mrs Lam and Mr Nip first visited Xinghu Lake Wetland Park to learn about its water quality management, wetland ecosystem restoration and heritage conservation. As one of the largest lakes in Guangdong, Xinghu Lake is an important ecological and tourism asset in Zhaoqing.
Afterwards, they went to Zhaoqing New District to find out more about its planning and related development proposals, as well as its underground tube system. Zhaoqing New District is one of the nine major innovation development platforms in Guangdong, and is aimed at developing innovative sectors such as digital economy, new energy vehicles and biomedicine. The new district has also taken the lead in introducing the underground tube system to integrate the electrical, communications, natural gas, water supply and sewage networks, which are being built simultaneously with the road system, thus enabling convenient future maintenance and the freeing-up of land for city development.
Mrs Lam and Mr Nip also visited the Hong Kong-Macao Youth Innovation and Entrepreneurship Base at Tus-City to learn about the services provided for start-ups including internship, exchanges, employment, setting up of businesses and daily living.
They then went to the Zhaoqing East Station transportation hub to visit the transport interchange connecting the Zhaoqing East high-speed rail station and the Dinghudong intercity railway station, and to Station Square to learn about Zhaoqing’s transport infrastructure and its advantages. This core area will continue to be developed as an integrated passenger terminal for high-speed railways, inter-city railways, highway transport and public transport.
At noon, Mrs Lam and Mr Nip attended a lunch hosted by Mr Lai and Mr Fan before travelling to Jiangmen.
They started their visit to Jiangmen at Inno Valley, an incubator for scientific technology enterprises from Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, and were briefed on the incubation services and co-working spaces for the enterprises. About 100 enterprises have set up a presence in Inno Valley to date, of which more than half are from Hong Kong. Inno Valley also collaborates with the higher education institutions in Hong Kong on transformation of scientific and technological achievements.
Mrs Lam and Mr Nip then visited the Jiangmen Wuyi Museum of Overseas Chinese to learn about the culture and history of overseas Chinese and their contributions to the homeland after they had established businesses abroad.
In the evening, they attended a dinner hosted by the Secretary of the CPC Jiangmen Municipal Committee, Mr Lin Yingwu, and the Mayor of Jiangmen Municipal Government, Mr Liu Yi.
Mrs Lam will continue her visit tomorrow (May 18).
“A History of the World in 100 Objects from the British Museum”, one of the main exhibitions to be presented by the Hong Kong Heritage Museum this year, will be open to the public from tomorrow (May 18). The exhibition features 100 specially selected items from the British Museum collection to tell the story of human civilisation and review common themes of human development from a new perspective.
Speaking at the opening ceremony today (May 17), the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, said the Government is committed to playing a pivotal role in fostering arts and cultural development in Hong Kong and promoting cultural exchanges with the rest of the world. He said he was delighted to note that this exhibition will further demonstrate Hong Kong’s strength as a vibrant city for art and cultural exchange.
Mr Cheung also extended his gratitude to the British Consulate-General Hong Kong and the British Museum for their continuous and ardent support in bringing treasures to Hong Kong; and to the sponsor, the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, for its generous support.
The exhibition, which is based on a popular radio programme by the BBC and the British Museum, uses 100 objects selected from the encyclopedic collections of the British Museum to tell the story of human civilisation and showcase the essence of global culture across 2 million years.
The exhibits are selected from various geographical areas and include the first human stone tool from Africa; evidence of the first city from Iraq’s “The Standard of Ur”; 50 manillas (a form of currency) from the slave trade; a ship’s chronometer from HMS Beagle of Darwin’s world voyage; and Japanese artist Hokusai’s famous woodblock print “Under the Wave off Kanagawa” from the series “36 Views of Mt Fuji”. Each object tells a story that invites the viewer to travel in time and to far corners of the world.
In tandem with the exhibition, the museum has specially arranged a display in the Education Gallery with the theme of 100 historical items about Hong Kong. A series of education programmes including talks, guided tours of the exhibition, activities for students and children, workshops for young and elderly people, social harmony events and cross-generational programmes will also be held to arouse visitors’ interest in world history, culture and art.
Other officiating guests at the opening ceremony included the British Consul General to Hong Kong and Macao, Mr Andrew Heyn; the Director of International Engagement of the British Museum, Ms Nadja Race; the Chairman of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, Dr Anthony Chow; the Chairman of Museum Advisory Committee, Mr Stanley Wong; the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Ms Michelle Li; and the Museum Director of the Hong Kong Heritage Museum, Ms Fione Lo.
The exhibition is jointly presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and the Trustees of the British Museum, jointly organised by the Hong Kong Heritage Museum and the British Museum, and solely sponsored by the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust. It is one of the exhibitions in the Hong Kong Jockey Club Series.
The exhibition will run until September 9. The Hong Kong Heritage Museum is located at 1 Man Lam Road, Sha Tin. For details of the exhibition and related programmes, please visit the website www.heritagemuseum.gov.hk/en_US/web/hm/exhibitions/data/exid257.html or call 2180 8188 for enquiries.
