kakase/hk_gov_press_release huggingface dataset:
Civil Service College holds sixth talk of series on country's foreign affairs (with photos)
21.6.2022

The Civil Service College today (June 21) held the sixth talk of the series on the country's foreign affairs jointly with the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The talk, on the topic of "China - United States Relations", was delivered via video-conferencing by Deputy Director-General of the Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mr Gao Fei. Addressing the talk, the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, said, "Hong Kong has been leveraging the support from the Mainland while engaging the world. The United States is one of Hong Kong's major trading partners, with close collaboration on many fronts. Nonetheless, in the face of the changes in the international landscape, Hong Kong has to accurately position itself, clearly discern the situation, get itself ready at all times, and continue to perform its unique role and function in the overall national development strategy. It is also important for Hong Kong to stand firmly on the same battle line with the country in resisting interference from other countries in the internal affairs of our country through Hong Kong affairs." Over 300 civil servants in the directorate and senior ranks took part in today's talk through online access.
Civil service volunteers reach out to serve elderly people in Aberdeen (with photos)
18.6.2022

Civil service volunteers visited Aberdeen and joined hands with a local organisation to visit some elderly households with special needs at Yue Kwong Chuen together today (June 18). They extended their warm regards by helping some of the elderly people to clean their homes and distributed to them anti-epidemic supplies, etc. The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, and the Commissioner of Correctional Services, Mr Wong Kwok-hing, led a 30-strong team comprising members from the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) Volunteer Team and the Oi Kwan Volunteer Group (OKVG) which was founded by staff members of the Correctional Services Department (CSD). They first attended a pledging ceremony at the Jockey Club Wong Chi Keung District Elderly Community Centre of the Aberdeen Kai-fong Welfare Association (AKA) Social Service. They also exchanged experience with volunteers of the AKA and prepared for the home visits later. Afterwards, they set off to visit elderly persons with chronic diseases, living alone or with special needs in the district to learn about their needs under the COVID-19 epidemic and brief them on anti-epidemic information and services. They also carried out minor home cleaning for the elderly. Many civil service colleagues actively participate in volunteer service in their spare time. The OKVG with a history of 17 years is a good example in this regard. The volunteer group has since blossomed into a team of over 5 000 people, with members including retirees and their family members. It has also developed into a charitable organisation. Mr Nip said, "The joint visit to Aberdeen by the CSB Volunteer Team and members of OKVG today illustrates that caring for the society is not sector-specific and there is no age limit for volunteering. It is our greatest reward to see the smiles on the faces of the elderly today. I hope that more colleagues will reach out to the community to participate in volunteer services to express their care. At same time, it will let us understand more about the needs of members of the public. Under the epidemic, although each volunteer service may not be very large in scale, the accumulation of small amounts of effort can already bring more warmth to the community." Even though many CSD colleagues had unfortunately become infected in the fifth wave of the COVID-19 epidemic, Mr Wong said that when the epidemic situation had become slightly stabilised, colleagues were united and enthusiastic in their response, and organised 20 volunteer activities from end-March to mid-June this year. About 370 volunteers, including recovered colleagues, were deployed to participate in anti-epidemic volunteer work.
SCS visits elderly families in Kwun Tong (with photos/video)
16.6.2022

The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, visited Kwun Tong District this afternoon (June 16) to participate in home visits under the Celebrations for All project. Together with a local organisation, he visited elderly families in Tsui Ping Estate, including elderly doubleton households and families of civil service retirees, to learn about their daily needs and distribute gift packs to them to show his care. Prior to the visit to the elderly, Mr Nip, accompanied by the District Officer (Kwun Tong), Mr Andy Lam, paid a visit to children at the Tsui Ping Child Service Centre of the Kwun Tong Resident Association. He also met with volunteers from a local organisation for the visit to the elderly, before they set off for the home visits in groups. Mr Nip has a strong attachment to the Kwun Tong District, and it was the first community he visited after assuming the post of a bureau secretary. He said, "My alma mater is in this district. This is also where I grew up. I attach importance to reaching out to residents in the community to learn about their daily needs, feelings and views by myself. "Due to the various waves of the COVID-19 epidemic in the past two years or so, many of the well-planned visits or volunteer activities had to be postponed or even cancelled. As the epidemic situation had stabilised slightly over the last month, my colleagues and I visited different districts to meet with the underprivileged and members of ethnic minorities, or reached out to outlying islands to assist in the COVID-19 vaccination of the elderly. Every smile and every word of encouragement from the people have touched me deeply." The Celebrations for All project is one of the major events to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Co-ordinated by the Home Affairs Department, various kinds of activities are being held together with non-governmental organisations and local organisations in 18 districts to show care for the less privileged.
Civil Service College holds inaugural seminar of "Dialogue with Experts" series (with photos)
7.6.2022

The Civil Service College (CSC) has launched the "Dialogue with Experts" seminar series for directorate and senior civil servants, and held today (June 7) the inaugural seminar with the topic of "Leadership in New Era - Change is Constant". Addressing the seminar, the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, said that the seminar series is another important training initiative launched by the Civil Service College. The seminar series aims to bring together experts, scholars and leaders from different sectors to share their insights on the sophisticated and evolving global order and the latest local situation in Hong Kong, and exchange views with civil service colleagues on topics such as public governance, social development and organisational governance. He said that Hong Kong had entered a new era in the past two years with the enactment of the Hong Kong National Security Law and the improvements to the electoral system for implementing the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong". The community has even higher expectations and demands towards the Government. As the backbone of the Government, the civil service plays a critical role in the effective implementation of policies in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Civil servants must have a good grasp of the country's development and the global situation; be capable of identifying directions, discerning prevailing challenges and seizing opportunities under the new era; proactively act in accord with the Government in the administration of Hong Kong; and deliver well the mission of administering Hong Kong and contributing to the country. He encouraged colleagues to broaden their horizons, get in touch with the pulse of the community more closely, enhance their leadership and management capacity, and unleash the power of leadership in times of change. Veteran media professional Ms Chan Suk-mei served as the moderator of the seminar today. The two speakers were Adjunct Professor of the Department of Politics and Public Administration of the University of Hong Kong and former Ombudsman Mr Alan Lai as well as the Chairman of the Community Investment and Inclusion Fund Committee, Mr Kwan Chuk-fai. Apart from describing their experiences in leading organisations and teams to embrace and move with changes, and giving tips on managing crises, the speakers also engaged in discussion and exchanged views with participants. The seminar took place in the College at the North Point Government Offices, and was attended by around 100 civil servants in the directorate and senior ranks.
CSB Volunteer Team visits children from grassroots families on Tuen Ng Festival (with photos)
3.6.2022

Members of the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) Volunteer Team spent their Tuen Ng Festival holiday today (June 3) making handicrafts together with children from grassroots families. The volunteer team also visited some families in need. CSB Volunteer Team joined hands with the New Home Association to organise the thanksgiving handicraft workshop, targeting children aged from seven to 13 and living in subdivided flats, who are from new arrival families or ethnic minority families. The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, the Permanent Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, and members of the volunteer team made handicrafts with 20 children at an activity centre in Yau Tsim Mong District today, so that the children could present their handicrafts as gifts to and show their respect for their families. The volunteer team also twisted balloons into different shapes and gave the balloons, as well as rice dumplings and gift packs, to the children. All of them enjoyed a joyful afternoon. The volunteers then paid home visits to some of children's families afterwards to learn about the daily needs of and the difficulties and challenges faced by the underprivileged groups. Mr Nip said, "The volunteer team earlier practised twisting balloons into different forms during lunch hours, hoping to bring joy to the children. During the event today, the balloons were twisted into various kinds of shapes. Just as the future of children, as long as they are in a caring community, there can be infinite possibilities for their future development. From another perspective, the volunteers can understand the daily needs of and the difficulties faced by the underprivileged groups through the event, which will also enable the civil service colleagues at their respective posts to provide public services that better meet the needs of the people and are more targeted." The Government has been in close contact with local organisations and social welfare organisations to promote various community care campaigns. In this regard, the CSB has set up a volunteer team to contribute to the support for the underprivileged groups, such as the grassroots, ethnic minorities, etc. Currently, 28 Government bureaux and departments have set up volunteer teams and organised activities on a regular basis, doing their best to serve people in need. Due to the various waves of the epidemic in the past two years, many of the well-planned volunteer activities had to be postponed or even cancelled. Mr Nip previously sent a letter to Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Departments to encourage civil servants to participate in and departments to plan for volunteer service by drawing on recent experience in promoting anti-epidemic volunteer service so as to encourage colleagues to take an active part in volunteer service. In addition, colleagues are recommended to explore areas of co-operation with other organisations and groups, joining forces with local communities to provide more diversified volunteer service.
Civil Service College holds fifth talk of series on country's foreign affairs (with photo)
20.5.2022

The Civil Service College today (May 20) held the fifth talk of the series on the country's foreign affairs jointly with the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). The talk, on the topic of "Protocol Affairs", was delivered via video-conferencing by Deputy Director-General of the Protocol Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mr Li Xiang. Addressing the talk, the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, said, "Hong Kong is an international city, and the HKSAR Government maintains close contact and co-operation in various areas with countries all over the world. Accordingly, civil servants have many opportunities to come across foreign organisations and officials and attend relevant formal functions. It is necessary for them to acquire deeper understanding of protocol matters and the concept of protocol affairs, so as to enhance their capacity in handling external affairs and to act in better concert with the country's overall approach." About 270 civil servants in the directorate and senior ranks took part in today's talk through online access.
SCS thanks team of Community Vaccination Centre at Loke Yew Hall of University of Hong Kong (with photos)
13.5.2022

The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, today (May 13) visited the Community Vaccination Centre (CVC) at Loke Yew Hall of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) to inspect its operation and express gratitude to the medical team and administrative support staff. Mr Nip said, "The CVC at HKU began serving the public on February 23 this year, and May 22 will be its last day of service. Back in February, the situation of the fifth wave of the epidemic was severe, with a strong demand for vaccination. The Civil Service Bureau was working at full throttle, setting up more vaccination venues and boosting the vaccination rate, in order to enable more people to have the protection conferred by the vaccines in a short period of time. With the support of the medical team organised by HKU and the joint efforts of Professor Yuen Kwok-yung, Professor Ivan Hung and the medical staff, the Government has for the first time set up a vaccination centre on a university campus serving all members of the public in Hong Kong. It has been almost three months since then. The vaccination centre has played a crucial role at the time when the epidemic situation was at its most severe." After the closure of the CVC at Loke Yew Hall of HKU, there will still be over 20 CVCs serving members of the public. The number of designated general out-patient clinics of the Hospital Authority providing COVID-19 vaccination service by reservation has increased to 43. In addition, members of the public can also opt for going to the 13 Hospital COVID-19 Vaccination Stations, over 1 000 private doctors and clinics providing the Sinovac vaccination service, and the 76 venues operated by private healthcare institutions providing the BioNTech vaccine, and more. Mr Nip said, "Vaccination quotas of other CVCs are still very abundant and there are quotas for vaccination available. Regardless of age, people should get vaccinated as early as possible for self-protection and to reduce the risk of falling seriously ill and death should they get infected. Unvaccinated persons should act as soon as possible, and receive the second and third doses on time to enhance protection." Details of channels for free COVID-19 vaccination are available at the designated website for the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme ( www.covidvaccine.gov.hk ).
Hong Kong's third-dose vaccination rate reaches 50 per cent
12.5.2022

The Government appeals to eligible persons for receiving the third dose of COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible to enhance protection and to prepare for the implementation of stage three Vaccine Pass at the end of this month. As of today (May 12), about 3.38 million people had received their third COVID-19 vaccine dose, accounting for 50 per cent of the population aged 12 or above. The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, said, "At present, there are about one million people who are due to receive their third dose but have not yet done so. As such, the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme has sent over one million SMS messages over the past two weeks to these people and reminded them to act promptly. "Currently, the COVID-19 vaccination rates of persons aged three or above for the first and second doses are 91.5 per cent and 85.6 per cent respectively. As the protection conferred by the vaccines will diminish over time, we should get vaccinated on time in accordance with expert advice to enhance protection. We need the proactive response from every member of the public in boosting the vaccination rate together and building a stronger protective barrier to cope with the future risks brought about by potential emergence of new mutant strains." The implementation of stage three Vaccine Pass will start on May 31. By that time, all applicable individuals in general (except certain special groups) will need to have received the third dose. To learn about the time intervals between COVID-19 vaccine doses, please visit: www.covidvaccine.gov.hk/en/recommendedDoses . The designated website for the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme ( www.covidvaccine.gov.hk/en/programme ) provides the latest information including details on vaccination venues, reservation and enquiry hotlines.
CSB conducts another "restriction-testing declaration" operation (with photos)
7.5.2022

The Civil Service Bureau (CSB) today (May 7) conducted a "restriction-testing declaration" (RTD) operation at Tak On House, Hau Tak Estate in Tseung Kwan O, arranging the residents subject to compulsory testing for specimen collection for COVID-19 nucleic acid testing in batches, and distributing to them food packs, rapid antigen test kits, and anti-epidemic proprietary Chinese medicines donated by the Central People's Government, etc. About 100 CSB staff members from various grades participated in the RTD operation. They are colleagues from the Administrative Officer Grade, the Executive Officer Grade, the Training Officer Grade, the Official Languages Officer and Calligraphist Grades, the Analyst/Programmer Grade and the Clerical and Secretarial Grades. The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, and the Permanent Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, were on-site giving encouragement to the staff members participating in the anti-epidemic work. Mr Nip said, "Although the recent epidemic situation has been subsiding, we must not let our guard down and must strive to prevent the resurgence of the epidemic. The CSB will continue to actively participate in anti-epidemic work."
Civil Service College holds fourth talk of series on country's foreign affairs (with photo)
21.4.2022

The Civil Service College (CSC) today (April 21) held the fourth talk of the series on the country's foreign affairs jointly with the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (OCMFA) in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The talk, which was on the topic of "China's relations with ASEAN, Japan, India and other neighbouring countries", was delivered via video-conferencing by the Director-General of the Department of Asian Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr Liu Jinsong. Addressing the talk, the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, said, "As a key link and the prime platform for the Belt and Road Initiative, and with the Central Government's support, Hong Kong can capitalise on its unique advantages to connect the Mainland with other neighbouring countries in economic and trade co-operation so as to achieve win-win collaboration. Acquiring a better understanding of China's relations with major neighbouring countries and a more comprehensive grasp of the latest developments in the region is not only for civil servants to enhance their knowledge and broaden their horizons, but also for them to be equipped to act in better concert with the country's overall approach in handling the relevant areas of work and make more contributions to the country. This is what the CSC and the OCMFA aspire to achieve in a deeper sense in launching this series of talks on the country's foreign affairs." About 280 civil servants in the directorate and senior ranks took part in today's talk through online access.
Government to extend opening hours of Children Community Vaccination Centres on weekends and public holidays
20.4.2022

The Government will extend the opening hours of four Children Community Vaccination Centres (CCVCs) on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays to between 8am and 8pm starting from this Saturday (April 23) and until May 15. Parents or guardians can make reservations for their children aged 5 to 11 to receive BioNTech vaccination free of charge during the extended opening hours at the designated website for the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme ( www.covidvaccine.gov.hk ) starting from 9am tomorrow (April 21). The CCVCs at Gleneagles Hospital Hong Kong, Hong Kong Children's Hospital, Yuen Chau Kok Sports Centre and Tsuen Wan Sports Centre will open as usual from 10am to 6pm daily on weekdays, while extending their opening hours to between 8am and 8pm on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays until May 15. The CCVCs will be closed daily between 1.30pm and 2.30pm for cleaning. The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Patrick Nip, said "We are sparing no effort in boosting the vaccination rates among children and the elderly. We hope that the extension of opening hours of CCVCs can assist parents to bring their children to receive vaccination during holidays. With serious and even fatal cases involving children being recorded during the fifth wave of the epidemic, parents or guardians should face squarely children's risk of serious illness and death from infection, and arrange COVID-19 vaccination for their children as soon as possible." As the BioNTech vaccine for children requires a special dilution procedure, children aged 5 to 11 must receive the BioNTech vaccine at the four CCVCs. They must bring along a consent form of the following version signed by their parents on the date of vaccination ( www.covidvaccine.gov.hk/pdf/Consent_Form_for_Fractional_BioNTech_Vaccination_ENG.pdf ) and must be accompanied by their parents or guardians in person when receiving vaccination. Persons have to bring along the original identity documents on the date of vaccination. If the identity documents do not bear the child's photo, such as the birth certificate, then school documents (such as school handbooks) bearing a photo of the student must be presented at the time of vaccination. In addition, children aged 3 to 11 can also receive vaccination at Community Vaccination Centres, general out-patient clinics of the Hospital Authority, Student Health Service Centres of the Department of Health, private clinics and more where the Sinovac CoronaVac vaccine is provided. Parents or guardians are advised to make reservations at the designated website for their children aged 3 to 11 to receive the third dose of the Sinovac vaccine three months after the children have received their second dose.