The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority: 
 
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) Infrastructure Financing Facilitation Office (IFFO) and the Insurance Authority (IA) jointly held a seminar today (March 26) on the strategic roles of insurance and guarantee in project risk management. The seminar attracted over 80 senior representatives comprising largely IFFO partners such as export credit agencies, financiers, investors, multilateral financial agencies and project owners, as well as members from the IA's Belt and Road Insurance Exchange Facilitation (BRIEF) specialised in risk management including insurers, reinsurers, captive insurers and insurance brokers.
 
     The one-day seminar covered infrastructure case studies featuring viewpoints of both insurers and the insured on political and commercial risk insurances. Seasoned speakers elaborated on their key strengths and advantageous propositions in political risk insurance and guarantee. Various risk management experts from the Hong Kong insurance industry illustrated how insurance brokers and insurers customised insurance solutions to address the corresponding risk management needs during the project planning, construction and operation phases.
 
     At the seminar, attendees were also illustrated with case studies of infrastructure projects in emerging economies that involved both public and private entities of different nationalities, with a view to bringing out the importance of risk management in facilitating project investment and financing in the region.
 
     "Investing and financing complex projects in emerging markets involve a multitude of specialty risks," said the Executive Director of the Policy and Development Division of the IA, Mr Raymond Tam. "Insurance industry can offer solutions to address these risks, not only by granting of loss payments but sharing of technical knowhow on how to mitigate or avoid these risks. Hong Kong is well-positioned as a global risk management centre and a regional insurance hub to provide support in this regard."
 
     The Executive Director (External) of the HKMA and Deputy Director of IFFO, Mr Vincent Lee, said, "Risk management is crucial to the success of infrastructure investments and financing. The seminar deepens the participants' understanding on the products offered by public and private insurers, and knowledge on applying suitable risk mitigation measures to further enhance project bankability. This event further showcases Hong Kong's unique role in facilitating infrastructure investments and financing through providing full-fledged services including project advisory and risk management."
 
     This seminar marked the first collaboration between IFFO and the IA. It also demonstrated Hong Kong's advantages as a comprehensive infrastructure financing and risk management centre. Both organisations will continue to explore co-operation opportunities in promoting the significance of risk management in infrastructure investments and financing.
 
About IFFO

     As part of the HKMA, IFFO's mission is to facilitate infrastructure investments and their financing by working with a cluster of key stakeholders. The functions of IFFO are:

• providing a platform for information exchange and experience sharing;
• building capacity and knowledge on infrastructure investments and financing;
• promoting market and product development; and
• facilitating infrastructure investment and financing flows.

 
     By establishing IFFO, the HKMA can play a valuable role as a catalyst in the facilitation of infrastructure investments and their financings with its mandate to promote Hong Kong as an international financial centre.
 
     For more information about IFFO, please visit www.iffo.org.hk.
 
About IA

     The IA is the independent insurance regulator in Hong Kong responsible for regulating and supervising the insurance industry, for the promotion of the general stability and sustainable development of the industry, and for the protection of existing and potential policy holders.
 
     To help enterprises from the Mainland, Hong Kong and overseas that participate in projects and other commercial activities related to the Belt and Road Initiative identify and create feasible risk management solutions, the IA announced in December 2018 the launch of BRIEF platform. BRIEF aims to bring together a cluster of key stakeholders and provide a platform for exchanging intelligence on risk management and insurance, forging alliances and facilitating networking. For details please visit www.ia.org.hk/brief.

      

     Police today (March 26) appealed to the public for information on a man who went missing in Western District.  

     Tan Dexiang, aged 72, went missing after he left his residence in Kwai Heung Street yesterday morning (March 25). His family made a report to Police on the same day. 

     He is about 1.6 metres tall, 54 kilograms in weight and of thin build. He has a pointed face with yellow complexion and short black hair. He was last seen wearing a black long-sleeved shirt, black trousers, brown shoes and a red cap.

     Anyone who knows the whereabouts of the missing man or may have seen him is urged to contact the Regional Missing Person Unit of Hong Kong Island on 2860 1040 or 9886 0034 or email to rmpu-hki@police.gov.hk, or contact any police station.

  

     A woman was fined $2,000 at the Eastern Magistrates' Courts today (March 26) for contravening the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance.
      
     The courts heard that in August last year, officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), the Home Affairs Department, inspected a suspected unlicensed guesthouse on Queen's Road East in Wan Chai. During the inspection, the OLA officers posed as lodgers and successfully rented a room in the guesthouse on a daily basis.
      
     According to the OLA's records, the guesthouse did not possess a licence under the Ordinance on the day of inspection. The woman responsible for managing the premises was charged with contravening section 5(1) of the Ordinance.
      
     A department spokesman stressed that operating or managing an unlicensed guesthouse is a criminal offence and will lead to a criminal record. Upon conviction, the offender is liable to a maximum fine of $200,000 and two years' imprisonment.
           
     The spokesman appealed to anyone with information about suspected unlicensed guesthouses to report it to the OLA through the hotline (Tel: 2881 7498), by email (hadlaenq@had.gov.hk), by fax (2504 5805) using the report form downloaded from the OLA website (www.hadla.gov.hk), or through the mobile application "Hong Kong Licensed Hotels and Guesthouses".

     InPARK (also known as Tsun Yip Street Playground), featuring an industrial culture theme, was officially opened today (March 26). In addition to inheriting the past industrial culture elements of Kwun Tong, the park also has a central lawn, various facilities and art installations to provide more greenery and open leisure space for public enjoyment.

     Officiating at the opening ceremony today, the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Ms Michelle Li, said Kwun Tong has transformed from an area filled with factories in the past into a business area with many commercial buildings. To keep up with the times, Tsun Yip Street Playground has undergone improvement works in two stages since 2013. The Leisure and Cultural Services Department took the opportunity to launch the Public Art Scheme of Tsun Yip Street Playground and commissioned seven groups of artists to create public art installations focusing on seven prominent industries in Kowloon East. These artworks highlight the industrial culture in Kowloon East and showcase the vision of integrating future commercial developments and creative design.

     Also speaking at the event, the Head of the Energizing Kowloon East Office (EKEO), Ms Brenda Au, said the EKEO endeavours to facilitate the transformation of Kowloon East into the second core business district. In the course of transformation, the industrial culture of Kowloon East in the past and the spirit of creation are respected. Capturing the industrial culture theme, InPARK showcases how the findings of the Study on Industrial Culture of Kowloon East are put into practice to integrate industrial culture elements with urban design to improve public space.

     InPARK is located at Tsun Yip Street, Kwun Tong. Its first phase of improvement works was completed in September 2014. Part of the playground was converted from an ordinary sitting-out area into an open-air gallery showcasing industrial culture and art installations. The second phase of improvement works converted the remaining part of the playground into a park with an industrial culture theme. It provides a central lawn with landscape amenities, sitting-out areas and a multi-purpose area for performance and exhibition. Seven artworks from the Public Art Scheme of Tsun Yip Street Playground are also featured in the park. The public can appreciate an artistic ambience filled with industrial culture elements while enjoying the open space. The public art scheme was launched by the Art Promotion Office in September 2016. The seven industrial themes representing Kowloon East are printing, clothing and garments, textiles, toys, plastics, electronics and timepieces.

     The seven selected artworks are "Stitching Memories" by Cordelia Tam, Matthew Tsang, Connie Ho, Quvan Yuen and Sharifa Leung; "The Fabric Green" by Tsang Suet-ming, Liane Cheung and Ng Siu-cheong; "Giant Robot" by James Law; "Cam4 Kau4" by Lau Mei-po and Yan Chin-wing; "Message" by Ng Siu-cheong, Liane Cheung and Tsang Suet-ming; "Printing Kwun Tong" by Leung Yee-hang, Kwan Hoi-lun, Wong Guan-nok and Kwan Chun-sing; and "Resonance Aura V: Clockwork" by Chris Cheung, Jeff Wong and Joseph Chan.

      

     The Chief Executive-in-Council today (March 26) endorsed the submission of the Fugitive Offenders and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2019 to the Legislative Council. The Bill will be published in the Gazette on March 29 (Friday), with First Reading on April 3.
 
     The objectives of the Bill are to address the Taiwan homicide case and to plug the loopholes in Hong Kong's overall mechanism in juridical assistance. 
 
     A spokesman for the Security Bureau (SB) said that the legislative amendments were proposed within the existing framework of the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance (FOO) (Cap. 503) and the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Ordinance (MLAO) (Cap. 525), with the aim of removing loopholes and distinguishing the case-based co-operation mechanism clearly from general long-term arrangements. All existing human rights and procedural safeguards provided for in the FOO and the MLAO will be maintained.
 
     The spokesman stated that references were drawn to similar case-based surrender arrangements which have been practised in other jurisdictions (such as the United Kingdom and Canada) for years.
 
     The key proposals of the Bill are as follows:
 
In the FOO
 
(1) To differentiate case-based surrender arrangements (to be defined as "special surrender arrangements" in the proposal) from general long-term surrender arrangements;
 
(2) To stipulate that special surrender arrangements will be applicable to Hong Kong and any place outside Hong Kong, and they will only be considered if there are no applicable long-term surrender arrangements;
 
(3) To specify that special surrender arrangements will cover 37 of the 46 items of offences based on their existing description in Schedule 1 of the FOO, and the offences are punishable with imprisonment for more than three years and triable on indictment in Hong Kong. A total of nine items of offences will not be dealt with under the special surrender arrangements (see Annex);
 
(4) To specify that the procedures in the FOO will apply in relation to special surrender arrangements (except that an alternative mechanism for activating the surrender procedures by a certificate issued by the Chief Executive is provided), which may be subject to further limitations on the circumstances in which the person may be surrendered as specified in the arrangements;
 
(5) To provide that a certificate issued by or under the authority of the Chief Executive is conclusive evidence of there being special surrender arrangements, such that the certificate will serve as a basis to activate the surrender procedures. Such activation does not mean that the fugitive will definitely be surrendered as the request must go through all statutory procedures, including the issuance of an authority to proceed by the Chief Executive, the committal hearing by the court and the eventual making of the surrender order by the Chief Executive. Other procedural safeguards, such as application for habeas corpus, application for discharge in case of delay, and judicial review of the Chief Executive's decision, as provided under the FOO will remain unchanged;
 
In the MLAO
 
(1) To lift the geographical restriction on the scope of application of the Ordinance; and
 
(2) To provide that case-based co-operation premised on the undertaking of reciprocity will be superseded by the long-term MLA arrangements once the latter have been made and become effective.
 
     During the period of public consultation, the SB received around 4,500 written submissions, of which around two-thirds were in support of the proposal.