Tag Archives: China

     The Civil Service College (CSC), in collaboration with the Institute for Hong Kong and Macau Studies, Peking University, launched an in-depth programme on “one country, two systems” and the contemporary China. As part of the programme, a lecture on the topic of “The Short-term Fluctuations and Long-term Growth of China’s Economy” was delivered by the Founding Dean of Peking University’s HSBC Business School, Professor Hai Wen, at the CSC today (December 19).
 
     President Xi Jinping said at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders’ Meeting last month that this year marks the 45th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up. The country will continue to pursue high-quality development and high-standard opening up. Chinese modernisation will bring the world more and greater opportunities for the modernisation of all countries.
 
     Addressing the lecture, the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, said that senior civil servants of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government must have an accurate understanding of the country’s economic development direction and strategies. Under “one country, two systems”, Hong Kong has the distinctive advantages of enjoying strong support of the motherland and being closely connected to the world. It benefits from the free flow of capital, talent and information, and the upholding of the common law system. Serving as a bridge linking the Mainland and the rest of the world, Hong Kong plays an important role in the country’s commitment to openness in its development. HKSAR civil servants should actively support the Government in capitalising on Hong Kong’s unique advantages, dovetailing with national strategies including the National 14th Five-Year Plan, the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Belt and Road Initiative. Moreover, the Government is committed to consolidating and enhancing Hong Kong’s development of the “eight centres”, providing impetus for sustaining Hong Kong’s competitiveness and economic growth, and contributing to the country’s modernisation on all fronts.
 
     Around 70 civil servants at the rank of Directorate Pay Scale Point 1 and 2 attended the in-depth programme. In addition, about 80 politically appointed officials and other directorate officers enrolled and sat in on the lecture via video conferencing.
 
     The programme was organised to further strengthen training for senior officials and directorate civil servants. It consists of 12 monthly lectures covering a wide range of topics, such as the Communist Party of China and the contemporary China, socialism with Chinese characteristics, the theory and practice of “one country, two systems”, as well as developments in contemporary Chinese society, economy, national defence, technology, and more. Distinguished scholars from the Mainland will deliver the programme and engage in in-depth discussions with participants.

      

     The Department of Health (DH) today (December 19) again urged members of the public to heighten their vigilance against respiratory tract infection in winter. With the weather becoming cool, an increased activity in some respiratory pathogens is expected. The Government’s free COVID-19 vaccination programme currently provides ample time slots to cater to scheduling requirements. Members of the public, especially high-risk groups, should receive vaccination in a timely manner for enhanced personal protection.

     The Government has started to provide XBB mRNA COVID-19 vaccination. Those with higher risks, i.e. adult residents of residential care homes and the elderly aged 65 or above, can make a booking at this stage through the Government online booking system at booking.covidvaccine.gov.hk/forms/index.jsp. If necessary, eligible persons can seek assistance for making online bookings from post offices (except mobile post offices). Venues providing XBB mRNA vaccines include 14 private clinics, 10 designated general outpatient clinics under the Hospital Authority (HA), 15 designated specialist outpatient clinics under the HA and clinics under the DH. Please visit the website of the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the DH (www.chp.gov.hk/files/pdf/xbb_venues_dec2023_eng.pdf) for details of the venues.

     Since the rollout of the administration of XBB mRNA vaccines on December 14, as at yesterday (December 18), a total of 8 316 doses of COVID-19 vaccines were administered. Among them, 5 649 doses were XBB mRNA vaccine.

     There are still ample time slots of free vaccination at private clinic COVID-19 vaccination stations available for booking, with less than 10 per cent capacity being used up in the coming two weeks. Eligible individuals with higher risks can make an appointment at these vaccination stations to receive XBB mRNA vaccine. For available booking time slots of various vaccination outlets, please visit booking.covidvaccine.gov.hk/centre/index.html.

     The DH strongly urged members of the public that high-risk groups should receive a COVID-19 booster and seasonal influenza vaccination (SIV) as soon as possible. Regardless of the number of COVID-19 vaccines doses received previously, they should receive a booster dose to be given at least six months after the last dose or COVID-19 infection (whichever is later). For convenience sake, the COVID-19 vaccine can be co-administered with SIV. Details of receiving both COVID-19 vaccination and SIV are available online (www.chp.gov.hk/en/features/106096.html).

     â€‹â€‹For the latest information, please visit the CHP’s COVID-19 & Flu Express and influenza page. As for vaccination, the public may visit the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme website and Vaccination Schemes page. read more

     In view of the cold weather, the Home Affairs Department has opened 18 temporary shelters in various districts today (December 19) for people in need of the service. The temporary shelters will remain open when the Cold Weather Warning is in force.

     To ensure that cold shelter users can rest in a quiet and undisturbed environment, members of the public or agencies wishing to make donations to shelter users are requested to register with the staff of the shelter first. Donors will then be directed to place the donated items at a specified indoor location. The staff will help notify the shelter users to collect the items on their own.

     Anyone seeking temporary refuge or with any questions about the donation arrangements at the cold shelters may call the department’s hotline 2572 8427 for more information.

     The 18 temporary cold shelters are located at:

Hong Kong Island:
——————–
 
Central and Western:

Sai Ying Pun Community Complex Community Hall
3/F, Sai Ying Pun Community Complex,
2 High Street, Sai Ying Pun

Eastern:
Causeway Bay Community Centre
3/F, 7 Fook Yum Road, Causeway Bay
 
Southern:
Lei Tung Community Hall
Lei Tung Estate, Ap Lei Chau
 
Wan Chai:
Wan Chai Activities Centre
LG/F, Wan Chai Market, 258 Queen’s Road East, Wan Chai
 
Kowloon:
——————
 
Kowloon City:
Hung Hom Community Hall
1/F, Kowloon City Government Offices, 
42 Bailey Street, Hung Hom
 
Kwun Tong:
Lam Tin (West) Estate Community Centre
71 Kai Tin Road, Lam Tin
 
Sham Shui Po:
Nam Cheong District Community Centre
1 Cheong San Lane, Sham Shui Po
 
Wong Tai Sin:
Tsz Wan Shan (South) Estate Community Centre
45 Wan Wah Street, Tsz Wan Shan
 
Yau Tsim Mong:
Henry G Leong Yaumatei Community Centre
60 Public Square Street, Yau Ma Tei
 
New Territories:
—————-
 
Islands:
Tung Chung Community Hall  
G/F, Tung Chung Municipal Services Building, 39 Man Tung Road, Tung Chung
 
Kwai Tsing:
Tai Wo Hau Estate Community Centre
15 Tai Wo Hau Road, Kwai Chung

North:
Cheung Wah Community Hall
Cheung Wah Estate, Fanling
 
Sai Kung:
Hang Hau Community Hall
G/F, Sai Kung Tseung Kwan O Government Complex, 
38 Pui Shing Road, Hang Hau, Tseung Kwan O

Sha Tin:
Lung Hang Estate Community Centre
Lung Hang Estate, Sha Tin
 
Tai Po:
Tai Po Community Centre
2 Heung Sze Wui Street, Tai Po
 
Tsuen Wan:
Lei Muk Shue Community Hall
G/F, Hong Shue House, Lei Muk Shue Estate, Tsuen Wan
 
Tuen Mun:
Butterfly Bay Community Centre
Butterfly Estate (near Tip Sum House), Tuen Mun

Yuen Long:
Long Ping Community Hall
Long Ping Estate, Yuen Long read more

     The Education Bureau and the Standing Committee on Language Education and Research (SCOLAR) held the Opening Ceremony for the Biliteracy and Trilingualism Campaign today (December 19) to start off a series of activities bringing together people from all walks of life for the promotion of biliteracy and trilingualism in various fields in the coming five months.

     The Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki; the Secretary for Education, Dr Choi Yuk-lin; and the Chairman of SCOLAR, Dr Anissa Chan, officiated at the event. To echo the theme of “biliteracy and trilingualism”, the three of them delivered speeches in Cantonese, Putonghua and English respectively.

     Mr Chan said in his video speech that biliteracy and trilingualism signifies the unique advantages of the language environment in Hong Kong. Under “one country, two systems”, Hong Kong has the distinctive advantages of enjoying strong support of the motherland and being closely connected to the world. Having direct access to the huge Mainland market and strong international connection at the same time, Hong Kong serves as a bridge between the Mainland and the rest of the world. He also pointed out that an effective biliteracy and trilingual environment is the key to the East-meets-West culture in Hong Kong, with around 600 000 people from different countries or regions, races and cultures residing in Hong Kong.

     He looked forward to the concerted effort to be made by the Special Administrative Region Government and all sectors in the community to strengthen the promotion of biliteracy and trilingualism in various fields amid the context of globalisation. This will consolidate and enhance the competitiveness of Hong Kong in the international arena and enable Hong Kong to become a more caring and inclusive multicultural community.

     Speaking at the ceremony, Dr Choi said that the Government strives to attract talent and funds from all over the world to Hong Kong for further study, employment and investment through multiple talent admission schemes to drive Hong Kong’s development growth. As a city where international talent gathers, not only does the biliterate and trilingual community help enhance the competitiveness of Hong Kong’s economy, but it also promotes integration and multiculturalism.

     She also said that it is an education goal to cultivate students’ biliteracy and trilingual abilities, and the EDB provides a series of resources, support measures and training for schools and teachers. She mentioned that SCOLAR organises and supports activities for the promotion of biliteracy and trilingualism with various stakeholders. She appealed to all sectors for their joint promotion of the Biliteracy and Trilingualism Campaign to develop Hong Kong’s linguistic capital and demonstrate Hong Kong’s status and appeal as a multicultural international metropolis.

     At the opening ceremony, Dr Chan introduced the work of SCOLAR and the Biliteracy and Trilingualism Campaign. In addition to the One-minute Video Production Competition, which enables students to explore the importance of biliteracy and trilingualism in their daily lives, SCOLAR also invited community partners to organise a series of activities for people from all walks of life. The programme parade of the Biliteracy and Trilingualism Campaign also sets out the upcoming activities to be launched by SCOLAR in 2024.

     The opening ceremony that was held at the Lecture Theatre of the Education Bureau Kowloon Tong Education Services Centre was rich in content. In addition to showcasing the newly filmed promotional video on biliteracy and trilingualism, the event also features representatives from the Hong Kong Hotels Association, the Hong Kong Retail Management Association, the Hong Kong Association of Registered Tour Co-ordinators and the MTR Corporation. They together shared the importance of biliteracy and trilingualism in different trades.

     In addition, several ambassadors of the Biliteracy and Trilingualism Campaign, including Minnie Soo who won a bronze medal for Hong Kong in the Women’s Table Tennis Team competition at the last Olympic Games; Vice-principal of Law Ting Pong Secondary School Dr Rizwan Ullah; and Christine Cappio, a French who published Chinese books. They participated in the chit-chat session and exchanged their experiences in learning and using biliteracy and trilingualism. Around 400 other guests from academia, business sector and community groups attended the opening ceremony.

     The EDB will continue to work closely with SCOLAR to create and cultivate an environment conducive to language learning with an aim to enhance the Chinese and English proficiency of the public. For more information, please visit the SCOALR webpage (scolarhk.edb.hkedcity.net/en/home).

        

     The overall Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) caseload in November showed a drop of 618 cases, representing a decrease of 0.3 per cent compared with that of October, according to the latest CSSA caseload stat… read more