Month: June 2026

Source: Government of the Republic of Korea

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

     The Civil Aid Service (CAS) today (June 7) organised an exercise codenamed “Gemini” at Wan Tuk Creek on Lantau Island and the Penny’s Bay Community Isolation Facility, mobilising more than 300 members. The aim is to strengthen the units’ emergency response, mobilisation, communication and co-ordination capabilities in situations of extreme weather, emergency rescue or infectious disease incidents, and further improve its command and control as well as operational efficiency when handling incidents.

     The exercise simulated a super typhoon affecting Hong Kong, with CAS officers and members from operational, administrative and support units ordered to assist rescue operations. Scenarios included typhoon and flood rescues, clearing fallen trees, transporting casualties, and infection control measures for sudden infectious disease incidents. These simulations test and evaluate the units’ efficiency and effectiveness in command and control, rescue techniques, communications, handling casualties and logistical support.

     In addition to simulating accidents that may occur during a typhoon, the exercise also featured multiple scenarios, such as mountain rescues, emergency rescues, rescuing residents trapped by flooding, fallen trees blocking roads and handling casualties, triage cases and evacuating disaster victims. During the exercise, CAS rescue teams swiftly set up casualty collection stations and utilised rescue technologies such as drones and robotic dogs, and for the first time, used an electric outboard inflatable rubber boat and self-contained breathing apparatus, ensuring rescue operations could be conducted effectively and quickly.

     The CAS hopes that by simulating different disaster situations, it can effectively assess members’ rescue skill levels and their adaptability to conduct emergency tasks. In 2025, the CAS was deployed 28 times due to typhoon and extreme weather, an increase over the nine deployments in 2024. In 2025, there were 1 366 participants, more than the 725 participants in 2024.

The CAS will continue to strengthen preparedness for extreme weather, emergency rescue and infectious disease incidents, aiming to safeguard the lives and property of citizens. 

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

The following is issued on behalf of the Ping Wo Fund Advisory Committee:
 
The Home and Youth Affairs Bureau (HYAB) and the Ping Wo Fund launched a territory-wide anti-gambling publicity campaign today (June 7). The campaign aims to raise public awareness of gambling-related problems and the risks of addiction, while promoting no-gambling messages during the 2026 FIFA World Cup period.
 
The Ping Wo Fund will organise a range of territory-wide events and publicity activities, including today’s anti-gambling football fun day and a series of thematic exhibitions. The exhibitions will also feature football-themed interactive games, with the campaign slogan “No Bets. No Regrets.”, enabling the public to enjoy the fun of football while conveying anti-gambling messages.
 
Speaking at the ceremony, the Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs, Miss Alice Mak, said that as a matter of policy, the Government does not encourage gambling. The Government adopts a multipronged strategy to address gambling-related problems, including law enforcement against illegal gambling activities, public education on the harms of gambling addiction, as well as the provision of counselling and support services to people in need. Football itself is a sport that benefits both body and mind. She urged members of the public, while watching the World Cup, to bear in mind that they should be rational and responsible football fans, stay away from gambling and build a healthy, gambling-free lifestyle for themselves and their families. She also reminded the public that participating in illegal gambling (such as placing bets with illegal websites) is an offence. Upon conviction, an offender is liable to a maximum penalty of a $50,000 fine and imprisonment for nine months.
 
 Miss Mak added that, apart from football betting, some gambling games on the market that feature elements of “winning big with small stakes” may also be addictive, and teenagers should stay vigilant. The Ping Wo Fund will strengthen its publicity efforts in both online and traditional media to remind the public to stay away from gambling and the traps of addiction.

Sponsored by the Ping Wo Fund and managed by the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Even Centre, the Anti-Gambling Ping Wo Truck will tour the territory and pay visits to schools to educate the public on the harms caused by gambling addiction through multimedia exhibitions and interactive games. The four counselling and treatment centres funded by the Ping Wo Fund will step up their services, such as extending their service hours to answer the gambling counselling hotline (183 4633) and respond to text messages received online or from instant messaging applications. They will also organise more outreach activities so that those in need can receive timely and appropriate assistance.　
 
The establishment of the Ping Wo Fund aims to finance public education and other measures to prevent or alleviate problems relating to gambling; provide counselling, treatment, and other support services for gamblers with gambling disorders and those affected by them; and conduct research and studies into problems and issues relating to gambling. The Ping Wo Fund Advisory Committee is a non-statutory body to advise the HYAB on the use and application of the Fund.
 
For details of the anti-gambling publicity campaign, please visit the Fund website at www.donotgamble.org.hk.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

     ​Mr Mok Mong-chan will assume the post of District Officer (Islands) tomorrow (June 8), succeeding Miss Amy Yeung.

     Since joining the Administrative Service in 2014, Mr Mok has served in various bureaux and departments, including the Judiciary, the Innovation and Technology Commission, the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau and the Education Bureau.

     He was the Assistant District Officer (Islands) before taking up the new post of District Officer (Islands).

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

     In support of the National Event on the Environment Day 2026, and the Beautiful Hong Kong Green Fest launched on June 1, the Environment and Ecology Bureau (EEB) and the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) held the joint eco-environmental volunteer service campaign in coastal provinces (regions and municipalities) in Hong Kong today (June 6). The Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan; and the Director of Environmental Protection, Dr Samuel Chui, led a government volunteer team to conduct coastal cleanup activity at To Tau Wan, Wu Kai Sha, and also mobilised the community to carry out coastal cleanup activity across Hong Kong, demonstrating a territory-wide commitment to protecting the ocean and building “Beautiful Bays”.

     Speaking at the event, Mr Tse said that the Special Administrative Region Government has all along spared no effort in protecting the marine ecological environment. To align with the nation’s comprehensive promotion of building a Beautiful China, the Government has actively taken forward the “Beautiful Bays” initiative, and Mirs Bay (Hong Kong Section) was honoured to be selected as a national “Outstanding Example of Beautiful Bays” at the end of 2025. In recent years, Hong Kong has also deepened regional cooperation with Guangdong Province and Shenzhen. In the monitoring of shoreline cleanliness, the Government has actively introduced smart technologies, such as drone monitoring and artificial intelligence image analysis, gradually moving forward to the goal of “clear water and clean beaches, thriving marine life, and harmonious coexistence between humans and the sea”.

     Mr Tse said, “To safeguard this beautiful ocean, it is not enough to solely rely on the Government’s efforts, but rather on the concerted efforts from the entire society.” He expressed his gratitude to the volunteers attending the activity and the volunteer groups participating in coastal cleaning at different coasts concurrently for their efforts to protect the ocean.

     On the same day, a delegation led by the Deputy Secretary for Environment and Ecology (Environment), Ms Fabia Tam; and the Deputy Director of Environmental Protection, Dr Vanessa Au, attended the launching ceremony for the joint eco-environmental volunteer service campaign in coastal provinces (regions and municipalities) in Shenzhen.

     The launching ceremony was guided by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), and co-organised by the Department of Ecology and Environment of Guangdong Province, the Society Work Department of the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee, Shenzhen Municipal People’s Government, and the Center for Environmental Education and Communications of the MEE. During the ceremony, the Director-General of the Department of Publicity and Education of the MEE, Mr Pei Xiaofei, presented flags to the heads of the ecological environment departments from the participating coastal provinces (regions and municipalities). The heads then read the proposal of eco-environmental volunteer service campaign “united for blue seas and beautiful bays”.

     For event details of the Beautiful Hong Kong Green Fest, please visit www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/news_events/events/hk_green_fest_2026.html.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) today (June 6) reminded restaurant operators who are interested in applying for the dog-admission permission to promptly submit their applications on or before the deadline June 8 (Monday).

A spokesman for the FEHD said, “The application process is simple. Restaurants intending to apply may submit their applications electronically through the FEHD’s dedicated webpage (www.fehd.gov.hk/english/licensing/dog_restaurants/index.html). Apart from hotpot restaurants, barbecue restaurants (including teppanyaki and Korean barbecue), and restaurants with an area less than 20 square metres, all restaurants with a full licence may apply for the dog-admission permission.”

The spokesman reminded restaurant operators to complete the electronic submission of their applications by 11.59pm on June 8.

The FEHD is accepting applications from restaurants for allowing dogs to enter their premises. As of 6pm yesterday (June 5), the department has received over 2 000 applications. The application period will end on June 8. To implement the new measure in a prudent and orderly manner, a quota of not more than 1 000 restaurants is set for the first phase of application. As more than 1 000 applications have been received, allocation will be made by balloting.

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The Government today announced that Mok Mong-chan will assume the post of District Officer (Islands) tomorrow, succeeding Amy Yeung.

Mr Mok joined the Administrative Service in 2014 and has served in various bureaus and departments, including the Judiciary, the Innovation & Technology Commission, the Constitutional & Mainland Affairs Bureau and the Education Bureau.

He was most recently the Assistant District Officer (Islands).

Source: Republic of China Taiwan

On the afternoon of June 6 (afternoon of the same day Taipei time), Vice President Bi-khim Hsiao and her delegation arrived at Palau International Airport after a flight of approximately four hours. Upon their arrival, Vice President Raynold Oilouch of the Republic of Palau and Ambassador to Palau Andy Kang-I Chen (陳剛毅) boarded the plane to welcome Vice President Hsiao.
An airport welcome ceremony followed, beginning with Palauan youth sounding conch shells in greeting. Vice President Hsiao was presented with a flower garland by a Palauan representative and saluted by a police honor guard. Accompanied by Vice President Oilouch, she waved to members of the overseas Taiwanese community who had come to welcome her.
The vice president and her delegation then proceeded to Asahi Baseball Field to cheer on the Taiwanese team currently participating in a Taiwan-Palau baseball friendly series. She presented the players with Taiwan-Palau friendship chocolates to express her encouragement and support. Vice President Hsiao also thanked the Taiwan International Baseball Interchange Development Association, as well as the players, for their contributions to collaborative baseball initiatives between Taiwan and Palau.
In the evening of the same day, Vice President Hsiao attended a dinner reception hosted by Vice President Oilouch.
 

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

A smart port is one that makes global connections easier through advanced technologies and efficient logistics.

Spearheaded by the Transport & Logistics Bureau, Hong Kong’s Port Community System (PCS) is an essential piece of digital infrastructure bolstering the city’s smart port development.

The PCS began pilot trials in early 2023 and was officially launched in January of this year. It allows enterprises to perform cargo tracking and cross-border customs clearance via a single platform.

End-to-end visibility

One PCS registrant, and an early adopter of the system during its pilot phase, is a logistics company headquartered in Japan.

Operating across markets in Asia, Europe and the Americas, the company has over 700 offices and distribution centres worldwide, and specialises in sectors including healthcare and automobiles. Its Hong Kong branch, a key regional hub, offers a comprehensive suite of freight services, such as international forwarding and door-to-door delivery.

With the PCS, the firm has embraced the integration of data on freight logistics and customs clearance status. Its Deputy Head of Air Freight Forwarding Group Kazunori Goto said that the PCS enhances operational efficiency and sidesteps human error.

He explained that, prior to the PCS being introduced, data was scattered across multiple platforms. Staff members lacked real-time visibility and spent significant time reconciling conflicting data.

“The PCS has effectively resolved these challenges. It provides a standardised customs clearance status that interfaces directly with our internal system.

“This enables us to offer seamless end-to-end cargo visibility for every shipment, while substantially reducing the subsequent manual follow-up workload for our teams.”

Specifically, Mr Goto mentioned that staff previously had no direct access to customs data from the China International Trade Single Window.

“With the adoption of the PCS, we can now conveniently obtain this critical data via API (application programming interface) integration. This has not only shortened our operational processing time, but also significantly reduced manual data entry errors.”

 

Digital empowerment

The PCS is developed and managed by the Logistics & Supply Chain MultiTech R&D Centre (LSCM).

LSCM Chief Executive Officer Simon Wong said the system’s development has followed an industry demand-oriented approach, and is being rolled out in three phases.

“In the final stage, we will connect and complete end-to-end workflows for multimodal transportation, and build a comprehensive digital ecosystem to enable the industry to reap the benefits of artificial intelligence-powered digital services.”

Mr Wong said that by linking to the PCS, enterprises can simply enter an ocean or airway bill number to check real-time information covering everything from cargo receipt to loading, departures, arrivals and customs clearance.

Notably, the PCS provides a “One-Data-Multiple-Declarations” function, which enables auto-filled data and one-click submissions to both Hong Kong customs and the China International Trade Single Window, thereby reducing repetitive data entry and mistakes.

The system also sends real-time alerts about shipping delays and temperature anomalies, allowing companies to adjust vehicles and warehousing arrangements.

Moreover, the PCS utilises blockchain technology to guarantee data safety and prevent unauthorised access.

Mr Wong explained that the data recorded covers cargo movement transfers, document numbers, warehousing, land transport tracking, customs declaration records and operational timestamps.

“Once this information is recorded on the blockchain system, it cannot be altered unilaterally. This provides credible evidence for trade financing, cargo traceability and other logistics services.”

Public reputation

Deputy Secretary for Transport & Logistics Amy Chan revealed that the industry’s response to the system has been highly positive since its launch, with over 6,000 enterprises getting on board to date.

Among the registrants are shipping companies, trading firms, freight forwarders and warehousing companies. Most of these are small and medium-sized enterprises.

Citing registrants’ feedback, Ms Chan said the system is viewed as highly cost-effective, and urged more firms to make use of it to realise the scale benefits of data interconnectivity.

“Looking ahead, we will actively explore connecting the PCS with more ports worldwide and international shipping data platforms to further strengthen Hong Kong’s digital connectivity as an international maritime hub.”

Ms Chan also outlined that the bureau is planning a number of pilot programmes in areas such as trade finance, offshore cargo tracking and smart customs, with a view to expanding PCS application scenarios.

“Nine banks in Hong Kong have already recognised the reliability of the trusted cargo status data for use in processes such as risk management, thereby facilitating trade finance.”

She added that the Government is expanding offshore cargo tracking to offer banks more comprehensive data, which will make it easier for Hong Kong’s offshore trading firms to secure financing.

In addition, the Government this month launched the Future Innovative Logistics Acceleration Scheme to encourage industry adoption of logistics data platforms, such as the PCS, that are operated by the Government or public organisations, with a goal of benefiting 100 logistics enterprises.

Source: Republic of China Taiwan

On the afternoon of June 6, Vice President Bi-khim Hsiao delivered remarks before embarking on a five-day, four-night visit to the Republic of Palau titled the “Palau Prosperity Project.” Vice President Hsiao said that during this trip they will continue deepening the diplomatic ties between Taiwan and Palau through meetings with President Surangel S. Whipps, Jr. and other key leaders;  visit sustainable tourism attractions and help promote Palau’s tourism development; and  witness alongside the Palauan government the achievements of Taiwan-Palau cooperation through the Diplomatic Allies Prosperity Project in the areas of medicine and public health, agriculture and fisheries, and public infrastructure. The vice president expressed hope that the visit will further deepen our nations’ multifaceted cooperation, building on existing foundations as we look to the future.
In remarks, the vice president said that today marks the official departure of the Palau Prosperity Project delegation, adding that this is her first visit to a diplomatic ally since assuming the vice presidency. She expressed her profound honor at being entrusted with this mission by President Lai, and that she feels the weight of the responsibility it entails. She stated that on this trip they aim to achieve the following three objectives:
The first is to deepen the diplomatic ties between Taiwan and Palau. During the delegation’s time in Palau, the vice president will call on President Whipps and other political leaders. President Whipps has visited Taiwan multiple times since taking office, she noted, demonstrating through concrete action his commitment to our bilateral relationship. In response to President Whipps’ proactive visits, this reciprocal visit is an opportunity to further deepen the friendship between our two nations.
The second objective is to assist Palau in promoting sustainable tourism – a priority of the Palauan government – and to showcase the beauty of Palau to more people in Taiwan. She said that the delegation is honored to have been invited by President Whipps to visit Palau’s well-known sustainable tourism attractions in person. The vice president expressed hope that more people in Taiwan will follow in the delegation’s footsteps, discover Palau through travel, and explore its beauty together.
The third objective is to jointly witness the achievements of Taiwan-Palau cooperation through the Diplomatic Allies Prosperity Project. In recent years, the government of Taiwan has collaborated with the government of Palau on the project, helping to advance Palau’s national development. The vice president stated that this trip will allow the delegation to witness firsthand the cooperative achievements our two countries have made in various fields such as medicine and public health, agriculture and fisheries, and public infrastructure.
Pointing out that diplomatic work is never easy, the vice president said that she will also visit the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan) in the Republic of Palau to cheer on and offer encouragement to all the frontline staff stationed there.
The vice president stated that it has been over a quarter of a century since the Republic of China (Taiwan) and Palau established diplomatic relations, and the two countries have maintained frequent and close interactions. She expressed hope that this visit will further deepen our nations’ multifaceted cooperation, building on existing foundations as we look to the future. The vice president added that she looks forward to this Palau Prosperity journey, working together so that Taiwan may engage with the world and deepen our bonds with friends in the international community.
Among those at the airport to see the vice president off were Acting Dean of the Diplomatic Corps and Saint Kitts and Nevis Ambassador Donya L. Francis and Palau Chargé d’Affaires David Adams Orrukem.