Author Archives: hksar gov

     The investigation team of the Civil Aviation Department (CAD) today (July 24) released Accident Bulletin 3/2018 in relation to the accident involving a Zlin Z 242 L (registration mark B-LUK) of the Hong Kong Aviation Club that … read more

     The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Joshua Law, today (July 24) listened to post-secondary students with disabilities discuss their learning experience of participating in a government summer internship scheme at a tea gathering at the Central Government Offices. He encouraged them to work hard to better equip themselves with knowledge to serve the community after graduation.

     Mr Law said that the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) launched the internship scheme for students with disabilities in 2016 with a view to allowing the students to gain hands-on work experience through placements in the Government, thereby strengthening their competitiveness, and enabling civil service colleagues to appreciate the talents and potential of persons with disabilities.

     He said, “The CSB this year has further expanded the internship programme by doubling the number of placements to about 100. Apart from inviting nominations from the eight local universities, we have also extended the scheme to other local post-secondary institutions, offering more young persons with disabilities the opportunities to have placements in the Government.

     “This scheme is different from other government internship schemes as training elements are incorporated. Apart from providing appropriate training and briefings for the interns so as to enhance their understanding of the operation and work of their respective departments, we have also assigned an experienced colleague to act as the mentor of each intern, assisting them in adapting to the work environment and coping with work challenges.

     “To allow the interns to unleash their potential, we have arranged for them to take up more diversified jobs, including scrutinising technical documents, editing departmental publications, event management, graphic design and production, developing teaching aids and providing support for engineering design checking.”

     The CSB has assigned close to 70 post-secondary students with disabilities to 41 government bureaux and departments for an internship of about eight weeks during the summer, and will offer placements for about 30 students of the Shine Skills Centre of the Vocational Training Council in October.

     Miss Kitty Wu, an undergraduate majoring in design, was attached to the Efficiency Office, where she assisted in the department’s social media graphic design work. She said that she valued her interaction with colleagues, through which they were mutually inspired, and added that her colleagues had been patient with her even though she sometimes needed more time to catch up at work. She also thanked her supervisors for their trust in her and said she enjoyed designing and gained a sense of satisfaction at work.

     Miss Wu’s mentor, Ms Helen Wong, said she was impressed by Miss Wu’s proactive work attitude and readiness to take up new challenges. She said Miss Wu’s work capability had in no way been affected by her physical disability.

     Miss Abby Huang and Miss Cat Cheung, interns at the Civil Service Training and Development Institute, provided support in the production of e-learning resources. Their mentor, Ms Claudia Ma, praised them for actively voicing out their thoughts, which had brought in new ideas for the division.

     Miss Cheung considered the internship experience a good opportunity to strengthen her ability to communicate and collaborate with others, and to enhance her understanding of public affairs. Both students aspire to make good use of their knowledge and experience to serve the community.

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     The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
      
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), and the three note-issuing banks (NIBs) (Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited, Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited and The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited) announced today (Tuesday) the issue of the 2018 new series Hong Kong banknotes.
      
     Consistent with the current series, the new series will consist of five denominations, each adopting the same colour scheme.  It is the first time that the thematic subjects on the reverse side of the NIBs’ new series banknotes are standardised for each denomination to facilitate easy recognition by the public.  The selected thematic subjects represent different aspects of Hong Kong as an international metropolis, featuring its rhythm of life, recreation and entertainment, as well as its rich natural and cultural heritage.  The five denominations depict respectively the position of Hong Kong as international financial centre (HK$1,000), the spectacular Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark (HK$500), Cantonese opera as our art and cultural legacy (HK$100), butterflies that inhabit Hong Kong (HK$50), and the popular dim sum and tea culture (HK$20).  For aesthetic presentation of the subject and easy distinction from previous series, the reverse side of the banknote is in vertical orientation instead of the traditional horizontal layout.
      
     The designs of all five denominations were unveiled today. The HK$1,000 and HK$500 notes will be put into circulation in the last quarter of 2018 and early 2019 respectively, and the lower denominations of HK$100, HK$50 and HK$20 will be ready for issue in batches between 2019 and 2020.
      
     The new banknotes have incorporated advanced security features.  Their placement on the banknotes is uniform across all five denominations.  The six key features are:
 

• Dynamic shimmering pattern – when the note is tilted, the shimmering ring in the pattern moves correspondingly.
• Windowed metallic thread – when the note is tilted, the large and small rings on the metallic thread move correspondingly.
• Enhanced watermark – the theme of the bauhinia flower is used such that the flower, leaves, bud and denomination numeral can be seen when the note is held up to the light.
• Fluorescent see-through denomination – the patterns on the front and back, which are of a single colour under normal light, will appear as two fluorescent colours when exposed to ultraviolet light.  The patterns on the front and back fit perfectly to form the denomination numeral when the note is held up to the light.
• Concealed denomination – when the note is tilted under the light, the denomination numeral hidden in the background can be seen.
• Embossed feel – raised printing gives the note a strong embossed feel by touch.

     
     Accessibility features such as braille and tactile lines will continue to be available in the new series for people with visual impairments to differentiate the denominations.  As a further attempt to facilitate people with visual impairments, the HKMA has sponsored the Hong Kong Society for the Blind to develop a mobile application that uses a phone’s camera to identify the denomination of Hong Kong banknotes and read it out for the user, but the application is not designed to distinguish counterfeits from genuine banknotes.  Note-measuring templates will continue to be made available through voluntary agencies serving the visually impaired community.
      
     The Chief Executive of the HKMA, Mr Norman Chan, said, “Similar to other places, we will at appropriate intervals introduce a new series of banknotes for the purpose of adopting the latest banknote printing technology, thus making it difficult for counterfeiters to imitate or replicate our banknotes.”  Mr Chan continued, “On top of carrying state-of-the-art security features, the unified thematic subject presented in a vertical layout for each denomination of the banknotes across the three NIBs makes the new series distinctive from the previous one and a good representation of the local culture of Hong Kong.  We are thankful to the Chinese Artists Association of Hong Kong, West Kowloon Cultural District Authority, Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department and The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts for their valuable advice on the different thematic subjects contributing to a new Hong Kong banknotes series well reflecting its spectrum of life.”
      
     The Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited, Ms Mary Huen, said, “The design of Standard Chartered’s 2018 Hong Kong Banknotes Series pays tribute to the ‘Hong Kong Spirit’.  Each banknote reflects a unique attribute of Hong Kong people – Wit and Wisdom, Resilience and Perseverance, Inheritance and Innovation, Better Together, and Sharing and Caring.  When the five banknotes are put together, their backgrounds form a silhouette of the Lion Rock, signifying the ‘Hong Kong Spirit’ that connects our people together.  As the oldest note-issuing bank in Hong Kong, Standard Chartered is very honoured to have the opportunity to contribute to this city’s development and create this new series of banknotes which is like the name card for all Hong Kong people.  We are committed to serving Hong Kong with our brand promise ‘Here for good’.”
      
     The Vice Chairman and Chief Executive of Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited, Mr Gao Yingxin, said, “Firmly rooted in Hong Kong, Bank of China (Hong Kong) has been serving the city for over a century.  We are proud of the many achievements and unique charms of this world-class metropolis. Our new series of HKD banknotes depicts the city’s attractions and reflects our close affinity with Hong Kong people while expressing our vision of building an even brighter tomorrow together. Looking forward, Bank of China (Hong Kong) will continue to deepen its local presence to better serve the public, with a view to growing and prospering alongside the city.”
      
     The Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, Mr Peter Wong, said, “The new series of HSBC banknotes are the first to use watercolour painting in the history of Hong Kong banknotes, giving vitality to imagery that highlights the facets of life in Hong Kong. Hong Kong has always been defined by its people’s shared values of hard work and entrepreneurialism, as well as its sense of family and community. Over the past 153 years, we have stood with Hong Kong people through tremendous change and worked with them to build the city’s prosperity. We hope that people holding our banknotes in their hands will feel the same connection to Hong Kong’s community and heritage as we do at HSBC.”
      
     All existing banknotes will continue to be legal tender. They will continue to be in circulation alongside the new banknotes, and will be gradually withdrawn as appropriate in due course.
      
     The HKMA will be launching an extensive promotion campaign to raise public awareness of the new banknotes.  Exhibitions will be held across several districts in Hong Kong, allowing the public to become familiarised with the new banknotes prior to their release.  An educational mobile application to enhance the public’s understanding of thematic designs and security features will be launched on the first day of the roving exhibition on July 25 at the Oval Atrium, IFC Mall. read more

     â€‹The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) today (July 24) said that two recycling sites in Yuen Long and North District, which illegally handled hazardous electronic waste (e-waste), were raided during an inter-departmental blitz enforcement operation in January this year. The companies concerned, Sam Tung International Trading Company Limited and Zhonglianxing (HK) Limited and its responsible person, were convicted and fined a total of $51,000 at Fanling Magistrates’ Courts on July 17 and today respectively for contravening the Waste Disposal Ordinance (WDO) and the Waste Disposal (Chemical Waste) (General) Regulation.

     An EPD spokesman said that a blitz operation was jointly conducted with the Police at various open recycling sites at Shan Ha Tsuen in Yuen Long and Ma Tso Lung in North District in January. It was found that two recycling sites, operated by Sam Tung International Trading Company Limited and Zhonglianxing (HK) Limited, illegally stored waste printed circuit boards (PCBs), which are classified as chemical waste. The PCBs concerned weighed about 12 tonnes and had a total market value of over $1.2 million. After investigation and evidence gathering, the EPD prosecuted the operating companies and the responsible person of the recycling sites in accordance with the Waste Disposal (Chemical Waste) (General) Regulation.

     The spokesman stressed that dismantled or destroyed PCBs, LCD monitors and cathode ray tubes are hazardous e-waste, containing heavy metals and other toxic substances. They are classified as chemical waste and are regulated under the existing laws on chemical waste disposal. The EPD is all along been committed to combating the illegal collection, storage, handling and import and export activities of hazardous e-waste. Anyone who violates the above laws shall be liable to a maximum fine of $200,000 and six months’ imprisonment for the first conviction. For subsequent offences, offenders are liable to a maximum fine of $500,000 and two years’ imprisonment.

     For more information about the control of chemical waste, please visit the EPD’s website: www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/environmentinhk/waste/guide_ref/guide_cwc.html.

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     The effective exchange rate index for the Hong Kong dollar on Tuesday, July 24, 2018 is 104.1 (up 0.5 against yesterday’s index). read more