The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) announced today (December 13) that the thematic exhibition entitled "Glistening Treasures in the Dust – Ancient Artefacts of Afghanistan", which had been temporarily closed earlier at the Hong Kong Museum of History, will be reopened tomorrow (December 14).

     Through displaying 231 sets of rare artefacts, including goldware, glassware, bronze sculptures and ivory carvings unearthed in Afghanistan, the exhibition showcases the profound influence of Afghanistan, as the cultural intersection of the Silk Road, on promoting the exchange and integration of world civilisations.

     A part of the current exhibits were thought to have been destroyed in wars and to no longer exist. But thanks to the relentless efforts of the staff of the National Museum of Afghanistan, these treasures have been preserved. Members of the public must not miss the chance of seeing these artefacts.

     The exhibition is co-presented by the LCSD and the National Museum of Afghanistan. It will run until February 10, 2020.

     The Hong Kong Museum of History is located at 100 Chatham Road South, Tsim Sha Tsui. For details of the exhibition, please visit hk.history.museum/en_US/web/mh/exhibition/current.html, or call 2724 9042 for enquiries.

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (December 13) that the services provided by Mobile Library 12 at Tsuen King Circuit in Tsuen Wan will be suspended on December 28 to facilitate refurbishment work at the venue.

     For enquiries about the services of Mobile Library 12, please call 2479 1055.

     Readers are welcome to use other public libraries during the service suspension period. They may also renew library materials by telephoning 2698 0002 or 2827 2833, or via the Internet at www.hkpl.gov.hk.

The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:
 
     The Legislative Council (LegCo) Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will hold a public hearing on "Planning, provision and management of public toilets by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department" (Chapter 1) of the Director of Audit's Report No.73 at 9 am tomorrow (December 14) in Conference Room 1 of the LegCo Complex.
 
     Nine witnesses have been invited to appear before the above hearing to respond to points raised in the Report and answer questions asked by PAC members.
 
     The programme for the public hearing is as follows:
 
Date: December 14 (Saturday)
Time: 9am
Venue: Conference Room 1

Subject: Planning, provision and management of public toilets by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (Chapter 1 of the Director of Audit's Report No.73)

Witnesses:

Professor Sophia Chan
Secretary for Food and Health
 
Mr Gilford Law
Principal Assistant Secretary for Food and Health (Food)2
 
Miss Vivian Lau
Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene

Miss Diane Wong
Deputy Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene (Environmental Hygiene)
 
Mr Fork Ping-lam
Assistant Director (Operations)3
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department
 
Mrs Sylvia Lam
Director of Architectural Services
 
Mr Fung Kar-chun
Senior Property Services Manager/TS3
Architectural Services Department
 
Mr Lee Cheuk-hang
Project Manager 365
Architectural Services Department
 
Mr Joe Wong
Commissioner for Tourism

     PAC is chaired by Mr Abraham Shek, and its Deputy Chairman is Mr Kenneth Leung. Other members include Mr Paul Tse, Mr Steven Ho, Mr Lam Cheuk-ting, Mr Shiu Ka-fai and Ms Tanya Chan.

     The Director of Health, Dr Constance Chan, and the Controller of the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH), Dr Wong Ka-hing, visited Po Leung Kuk Camões Tan Siu Lin Primary School in Yau Ma Tei this morning (December 13) to observe the school outreach vaccination service arranged by the Government.
 
     The primary school has participated in the 2019/20 Seasonal Influenza Vaccination School Outreach (Free of Charge) – Primary Schools (Primary School Outreach) and the DH arranged for a Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) Team to provide vaccinations for schoolchildren at school. Parents of over 600 pupils consented to having their children receive vaccinations at the school, with the figure representing over 65 per cent of the total number of pupils of the school. This was a second dose vaccination activity, providing vaccinations for those students who were less than nine years old and had never had a seasonal influenza vaccination (SIV) before this season.
 
     Dr Chan said she was pleased to learn that the vaccination programme has been well received by schools and parents, and added, "In 2018-19, the DH has launched the School Outreach Vaccination Pilot Programme to provide an SIV to students at primary schools through the Government Outreach Teams or the PPP Teams. The outcome has been positive. To further enhance the vaccination rate of schoolchildren, the DH has regularised the programme this season so as to cover more primary schools, and has also extended the coverage to kindergartens and child care centres as a pilot."
 
     So far, about 430 primary schools and around 710 kindergartens/child care centres have enrolled in this free-of-charge school outreach vaccination programme, representing about 65 per cent of the schools concerned across the territory.
 
     Dr Chan viewed the onsite arrangement of the vaccination service for schoolchildren by the PPP Team and the procurement and delivery arrangement of vaccines by the DH. She said that she was delighted with the smooth outreach vaccination service and looked forward to the continuous and full support from schools and parents as home-school co-operation has been of vital importance in enhancing vaccination coverage.
 
     For eligible children who will not receive an SIV through school outreach vaccinations, parents can arrange for subsidised vaccinations for their children in clinics of private doctors enrolled in the Vaccination Subsidy Scheme (VSS). Other eligible persons can also receive subsidised or free SIVs through the VSS and the Government Vaccination Programme (GVP) respectively.
 
     Dr Wong pointed out that influenza vaccines are safe and effective and that all persons aged 6 months or above, except those with known contraindications, are recommended to receive SIVs for personal protection. Furthermore, vaccinations among family members is crucial in protecting their personal and family health.
 
     The winter influenza season usually starts in January every year, yet the exact time of arrival cannot be predicted. As it takes about two weeks to develop antibodies after vaccination, Dr Wong called on members of the public to receive an SIV early.
 
     Dr Wong said, "Besides high-risk groups such as the elderly, people aged 50 to 64, children and immunocompromised patients, healthy people may also contract influenza and develop complications. Noting that the vaccination rate among people aged 50 to 64 is lower compared with other groups, we appeal to those in that age group to receive an SIV early via the VSS to safeguard the health of themselves and their families.”
 
     The various vaccination programmes have already been launched in October. As of December 8, 2019, about 376 700 doses of seasonal influenza vaccines had been administered via the GVP and 334 800 doses via the VSS. In addition, about 157 000 and 63 600 doses of seasonal influenza vaccines had been administered via the two outreach vaccination programmes conducted in some 400 primary schools and 650 kindergartens/child care centres respectively. The total number of doses administered by the above programmes was about 932 100, representing an increase of about 8.1 per cent over the same period in the 2018/19 season.
 
     Members of the public may call the CHP's hotline (2125 2125) for enquiries during office hours or visit the Vaccination Schemes page for more information on the vaccination programmes.
 

        

     Member of the Executive Council Mrs Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee today (December 13) reviewed the 188th Fire Services passing-out parade for 13 station officers, 43 firemen, six ambulance officers and 50 ambulancemen at the Fire and Ambulance Services Academy.
         
     Speaking at the parade, Mrs Ip commended the fire and ambulance personnel of the Fire Services Department (FSD) for being an excellent team in the eyes of the general public, especially in handling major incidents such as those caused by fire, storms and heavy rain, shipwrecks and traffic accidents. Serving with courage, FSD members endeavour fearlessly to rescue persons who are trapped and injured. Their professional performance is admirable, she said.
 
     She added that every aspect of the work of the fire and ambulance personnel had kept abreast of social changes and is highly specialised nowadays.
 
     "Through the implementation of the Specialist Training Enhancement Scheme, which is in line with technique-based and knowledge-based directions, the FSD has formulated a training framework covering 16 specialised areas, including high-angle rescue; live fire and compartment fire behaviour; marine firefighting and rescue; urban search and rescue; paramedical care; fire investigation; law and prosecution; and media training.
 
     "Today, ambulance personnel not only acquire knowledge of basic ambulance aid, paramedic supervisors are also qualified to perform 16 treatment procedures and apply 20 types of drugs, which greatly enhances the quality of pre-hospital ambulance services," Mrs Ip said.
 
       Mrs Ip said the acclaimed firefighting, rescue and ambulance services in Hong Kong today have cemented our position as the pioneer in the region, She noted that such accomplishments and the rapid development in the emergency services are attributable to the dedication of FSD members of all generations, who have been striving for excellence and moving with the times.
 
     "At a time when our society is undergoing considerable disorder, members of the public and I are very grateful that Hong Kong has such a devoted, efficient and professional disciplined force which makes every effort to protect our lives and property," Mrs Ip added.
 
      The parade was followed by a demonstration of firefighting and rescue techniques by the graduates. The 112 graduates will be posted to various fire stations and ambulance depots.