Month: July 2025

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The launch ceremony of the Infrastructure x Education Exhibition and the first phase of achievement of the STEAM UP project, jointly organised by the Development Bureau and the Construction Industry Council, was held today.

This is the first time the construction industry has collaborated with the education sector to organise a large-scale exhibition featuring infrastructure projects in Hong Kong to promote Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) education related to the construction industry, helping students apply STEAM knowledge through the examples of infrastructure projects and encouraging the youngsters to join the construction industry.

Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn said at the ceremony that she hopes infrastructure can tell the good stories of Hong Kong and share STEAM knowledge via the exhibition, arousing students’ interest towards the construction industry and the exploration of STEAM knowledge.

A first three-dimensional Infrastructure Map supporting STEAM education was launched at the event, introducing 32 types of infrastructure projects in Hong Kong and related STEAM knowledge. The map will be exhibited in various districts to let the public understand the city’s infrastructure.

A set of architecture-themed learning and teaching materials of the STEAM UP project, including teachers’ lesson plans and teaching materials as well as story books, games and e-learning platforms, was also rolled out.

Another eight sets of learning and teaching materials, covering architecture, surveying, planning, landscape architecture and engineering, will be launched progressively for use in classrooms in primary and secondary schools starting from 2025-26 school year.

Ten thematic zones are set up in the exhibition. In addition to the aforementioned major projects, it also introduces the work, careers and development prospects of in the construction industry. Interactive games with construction robots are also available.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     The launching ceremony of the Infrastructure x Education Exhibition and the first phase of achievement of the STEAM UP project, jointly organised by the Development Bureau and the Construction Industry Council (CIC), was held today (July 3). This is the first time for the construction industry to collaborate with the education sector to organise a large-scale exhibition featuring infrastructure projects in Hong Kong to promote STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) education related to the construction industry, thereby helping students apply STEAM knowledge through practical examples of infrastructure projects and encouraging the younger generation to join the construction industry.

     Speaking at the launching ceremony, the Secretary for Development, Ms Bernadette Linn, said that the construction industry and infrastructure involve many STEAM elements. The construction industry joins hands with the education sector to launch STEAM learning and teaching materials, which can make learning more effective. She hoped that, through this exhibition, infrastructure can tell the good stories of Hong Kong and share STEAM knowledge, which arouses students’ interest towards the construction industry and the exploration of STEAM knowledge.

     Other officiating guests at the launching ceremony were the Permanent Secretary for Development (Works), Mr Ricky Lau; the Under Secretary for Education, Dr Sze Chun-fai; the Chairman of the CIC, Professor Thomas Ho; the Executive Director of the CIC, Mr Albert Cheng; and the Executive Director of Hong Kong Education City, Dr Tenny Lam.

     Hong Kong’s first 3-dimensional Infrastructure Map supporting STEAM education was launched at the ceremony, introducing 32 types of infrastructure projects in Hong Kong and the related STEAM knowledge. The Infrastructure Map will be exhibited in various districts in Hong Kong in the future to let members of the public understand the edges of the infrastructure of Hong Kong.
 
     The first set of architecture-themed learning and teaching materials of the STEAM UP project, including teachers’ lesson plans and teaching materials, as well as story books, games and e-learning platforms for students, was also rolled out at the ceremony, offering all-round support to STEAM education in schools. Another eight sets of learning and teaching materials, covering aspects of architecture, surveying, planning, landscape architecture and engineering, will be launched progressively for use in classrooms in primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong starting from 2025/26 school year.

     Ten thematic zones are set up in the exhibition. In addition to the aforementioned two major projects, the exhibition also introduces the work, career paths and development prospect of various professional fields in the construction industry, helping students plan their careers. Interactive games with construction robots are also available.

     A series of talks are also organised in the exhibition, where speakers from government departments, tertiary institutions, training institutions, professional institutes and trade associations discuss topics covering innovative technology, Building Information Modelling, artificial intelligence, Modular Integrated Construction, Multi-trade integrated Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing, etc.

     The Infrastructure x Education Exhibition is part of the Learning & Teaching Expo 2025 being held from July 2 to 4, at Booth R01, Hall 3B, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Expo Drive, Wan Chai. For more information about the exhibition, please visit: https://www.constructionhk.org/en/infrastructure-education/.

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The Electoral Affairs Commission (EAC) today released the proposed guidelines on election-related activities in respect of the Legislative Council Election for a public consultation that will last for 30 days until August 1.

The 2025 LegCo General Election will be held on December 7. Before each general election, the EAC will review and update the guidelines.

At a press conference today, EAC Chairman David Lok said that these guidelines aim to explain in simple language the provisions under current electoral legislation with a view to reminding candidates and other relevant people of the regulations and requirements of the electoral legislation; and to promulgate a code of conduct based on the fair and equal treatment principles in respect of election-related activities which are not covered by the legislation.

The amendments are mainly composed of four categories: to reflect the amended electoral legislation, such as the procedures if electronic counting arrangements are adopted in functional constituency elections; to reflect the latest electoral arrangements and facilitation measures, for instance, electors could log on to an online system to check information such as their allocated polling stations, and candidates could submit election forms via electronic means; to further elaborate the contents of the guidelines to enable candidates and other relevant people to have a clearer understanding of the areas which they should pay attention to; and to align with the amendments already made to the other guidelines on election-related activities.

Mr Lok said: “To enable the public to better understand the requirements of the relevant electoral legislation and the code of conduct formulated by the EAC for the conduct of election-related activities, we have also enhanced the proposed guidelines by, for example, explaining the relevant electoral arrangements in the form of tables, consolidating the contents of the chapters, etc, with a view to making the proposed guidelines more concise and easy to comprehend.”

The proposed guidelines can be downloaded online or viewed at the Registration & Electoral Office, the Home Affairs Enquiry Centres of all district offices and the major and district public libraries.

People are welcome to make written representations on the proposed guidelines by email, by post to 8/F, Treasury Building, 3 Tonkin Street West, Cheung Sha Wan, Kowloon, or fax to 2511 1682 on or before August 1.

The EAC will hold a public forum from 7pm to 9pm on July 18 at the School Hall, 4/F, Kowloon Tong Government Primary School. The last admission time is 8pm.

Call 2891 1001 for enquiries.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Following is the keynote speech by the Permanent Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury (Financial Services), Ms Salina Yan, at the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX)’s Integrated Fund Platform Order Routing Service Launch Ceremony today (July 3):
 
Bonnie (Chief Executive Officer of the HKEX, Ms Bonnie Chan), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
 
     It is my great pleasure to join you all today at the Launch Ceremony of the Order Routing Service under the Integrated Fund Platform operated by the HKEX.
 
     Digital infrastructure is key to the operation and development of the modern-day capital market. Today’s launch ceremony signifies a solid step in the construction of a market-wide infrastructure for our fund management industry leveraging the advancement in technology.
 
     For the first six months of this year – 2025, the Hong Kong stock market’s daily turnover reached HK$240 billion on average, up 118 per cent year on year. We also saw 44 IPOs (initial public offerings) raising a total of HK$107 billion, surpassing the annual figure of 2024 by 22 per cent and assuming a leading position in the world’s IPO fund raised during the same period this year.
 
     Fund flows in the collective investment scheme and asset management space are equally active. As of end-March 2025, for Hong Kong-domiciled funds, an overall net inflow of about HK$343 billion was recorded over the past 12 months, representing an increase of 285 per cent year on year. The AUM (assets under management) surged by close to 40 per cent, and the number of licensed corporations providing asset management services rose by about 5 per cent.
 
     As our capital market continues to grow in depth and breadth, we need to maintain the robustness and nimbleness of our backbone infrastructure to keep up with the demand and cater for future development. Legislative framework and regulatory regimes also have to be refreshed from time to time in order to bring out the growth potential in the marketplace and remove bottlenecks and inefficiencies that may exist.
 
     For example, to enrich the suite of products that can be made available to the market, the Government has amended the Securities and Futures Ordinance and enacted a new piece of legislation to introduce the open-ended fund company or OFC and limited partnership fund or LPF regimes to enable funds to set up in company and limited partnership forms. The diversified fund structures have been well received. As of the end of May this year, over 560 OFCs have been set up, and nearly 1 150 LPFs have been established in Hong Kong.
 
     In addition, we keep enhancing our connectivity with the Mainland market. For example, since the launch of the Cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect (WMC) 2.0 in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in February 2024 which, among other enhancement measures, allowed the investment quota per investor to go up to RMB3 million, there has been a significant increase in the number of investors and amount of cross-boundary fund remittances. As of end-May 2025, some 158 000 individual investors participated in the WMC. Cross-boundary fund remittances amounted to over RMB115 billion, around seven times increase compared with WMC 1.0.
 
     We are also expanding our international network. Two ETFs (exchange-traded funds) tracking Hong Kong indices were listed on the Saudi Exchange last year. In May this year, we saw Asia’s first investment-grade sukuk ETF listing in Hong Kong, as well as a new Mutual Recognition of Funds arrangement reached with Ireland.
 
     All these market development initiatives are going hand in hand with the upgrading of our financial market infrastructure. The HKSAR (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region) Government has been working with parties concerned to establish paperless, straight-through and one-stop integrated digital platforms for the provision of financial services, taking advantage of fintech developments and the rise of blockchain and AI. The goal is to increase efficiency and lower costs. As a key market operator, the HKEX has an important role to play in this, and we are very pleased to have the HKEX’s active participation and partnership in this journey.
 
     The implementation of an uncertificated securities market in Hong Kong, for example, will be a significant step towards modernising our securities market. It will allow individual investors to own securities in their names without a paper certificate and manage transactions through a digitalised platform. The Government, in collaboration with the Securities and Futures Commission and the HKEX, has completed all the relevant legislative work this year, with a view to launching the regime in the first half of 2026 following market preparations.
 
     Moving from securities to funds, I am glad to note that the first phase of the Integrated Fund Platform, the Fund Repository, has received positive responses for its comprehensive coverage and ease of use. I am also very pleased to note that the second phase of the Platform, the Order Routing Service launched today, has attracted the participation of major banks, transfer agents, brokers and fund houses. Leveraging the Communications Network developed jointly with the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, the Order Routing Service provides end-to-end transmission of subscription and redemption orders among fund distributors and transfer agents. I understand that development work on additional functionalities in the next phase, including nominee services and facilitation of payment and settlement, is under way.
 
     The development of an efficient and vibrant fund distribution ecosystem will drive market efficiency and lower transaction costs. This would in turn benefit end-investors and help realise our vision as the world’s top asset management hub and strengthening our status as an international financial centre. I congratulate the HKEX and its partner organisations on reaching this milestone and look forward to the full operation of a one-stop Platform encompassing the entire functionalities taking heed of user experience and stakeholder feedback. Thank you.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The Hong Kong Public Libraries will launch the Summer Library Festival 2025 under the theme “Summer Footprints – Stories of Local Culture” in July and August, the Leisure & Cultural Services Department announced today.

 

Through activities including workshops, online programme, exhibitions, etc, the festival aims to deepen the public’s understanding of the life and traditional culture of the city, and raise their interest in reading.

 

Parents and children may join workshops at public libraries in various districts, where they can learn more about the life and culture of Hong Kong, such as the Cheung Chau Jiao Festival, street food and the love for giant pandas through making handicrafts.

 

They can also participate in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) workshops to make mini neon signs and distinctive music boxes, while learning about the science behind them. 

 

For teenaged and adult readers, they can opt for taking part in the landscape painting with Hong Kong characteristics workshops to learn about drawing and painting the city’s beautiful scenery with coffee and pencils, or the transportation 3D origami workshops to make paper crafts of Hong Kong’s public transport icons.

 

Furthermore, children can join storytelling workshops to learn about the significance of traditional festivals and make related handicrafts.

 

The Summer Library Festival 2025 also includes a four-episode online programme with the theme “From the Dining Table to the Writing Desk”, exhibitions on the history of Hong Kong in the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and intangible cultural heritage, different handicraft and traditional Chinese painting and calligraphy workshops, as well as large-scale calligraphy performances featuring the history and culture of the Qin and Han dynasties.

 

All activities are free of charge. Seat reservations are required for some of the programmes.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region