Category: MIL-OSI

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

The Home and Youth Affairs Bureau (HYAB) and the Youth Development Commission (YDC) jointly launched the HYAB Funding Scheme for International Youth Exchange 2026-27 today (December 9). Eligible non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are invited to submit applications.
 
The Government attaches great importance to youth development. The HYAB promulgated the Youth Development Blueprint at the end of 2022, which states that the Government will further strengthen the breadth and depth of the Mainland and international internship and exchange programmes with a view to enhancing young people’s understanding of the development of the country and the world. Through the HYAB Funding Scheme for International Youth Exchange, the HYAB and the YDC provide funding for NGOs to organise international exchange projects for Hong Kong young people to broaden their global exposure and their understanding of the history, culture and the latest developments of different places. The funding scheme also covers exchange projects to regions along the Belt and Road to promote cultural exchanges and foster people-to-people bonds. The Pilot Scheme on Subsidy to Grassroots Youth for Participating in Exchange Activities Outside Hong Kong that launched earlier will also continue to provide additional subsidies to grassroots youth with financial needs to participate in exchange projects under the 2026-27 funding scheme.
 
Details of the new round of the funding scheme are available on the YDC website www.ydc.gov.hk/en/programmes/ep/ep_fundingschemeinternational.html). Interested NGOs should submit their applications via the e-application system on or before January 6, 2026.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Following is the speech by the Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Ms Mable Chan, at the Airspace Asia Pacific 2025 today (December 9):

Mr Hocquard (Director General of the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO), Mr Simon Hocquard), Mr Han (Director-General of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore and Chair of the Asia Pacific CANSO, Mr Han Kok-juan), Mr Arel (Chair of CANSO, Mr Tim Arel), Messrs Ma (Deputy Administrator of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), Mr Ma Bing, and Regional Director of Asia Pacific Office, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Mr Ma Tao), Mr Miao (Director-General of the Air Traffic Management Bureau of the CAAC, Mr Miao Xuan), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

     Good morning, and to our friends from abroad, a very warm welcome to Hong Kong. It is my great honour to address the CANSO Airspace Asia Pacific 2025. With our prime location right at the heart of Asia, half of the world’s population are within five hours by air. Not to mention as a premier southern gateway to the world’s second largest economy – the Chinese Mainland – Hong Kong is truly the perfect place to host this remarkable event.

     Backed by firm national support and strong global connectivity, Hong Kong is widely recognised as an international aviation hub. Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) is a world leader in air cargo and a top international passenger airport. Last year, it handled 53 million passengers, an increase of one-third year-on-year, ranked among the top 10 busiest international passenger airports in the world. Over the first 10 months this year, HKIA already handled over 50 million passengers, representing 15 per cent growth compared to the same period last year. Cargo volume rose by 2.3 per cent year-on-year to over 4.1 million tonnes. Currently, about 140 airlines are operating, connecting us to over 200 destinations around the world. I’m very happy to say today that HKIA is just named by the 2025 World Travel Awards as the world’s leading airport in terms of customer experience.

     As we have turned our dual-runway into a three-runway system, we are accelerating the expansion of the aviation network. Over the past two years, we have expanded bilateral air services agreements with more than 10 countries. I am happy to tell you that just the past two months, we have managed to strike deals and detailed agreements with a handful of South American countries, namely Chile, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, Cuba, as well as Poland in Europe and Togo in West Africa. These are all countries in our major aviation partner network, including under the Belt and Road Initiative. In a way, we hope that we will extend our air connectivity to support our business and tourism sectors when dealing with all these countries. 

     While managing the very busy high-altitude air traffic, we are also actively exploring the opportunities presented by emerging unmanned air mobility technologies flying at the low altitude. As one of the themes of this conference, “Seamless Airspace: Integrating Manned, Uncrewed, and Advanced Air Mobility” is a powerful reflection of both the dynamic skies around the world. Today, allow me to take you through our journey of turning this vision of seamless integration from concept into tangible reality.

     In Hong Kong, a city known for its ambition and innovation, we are building a new layer of intelligent, connected infrastructure in the airspace below 1 000 metres. We recognise that the low-altitude economy (LAE) is a very powerful convergence of aviation, digitalisation and green technology. But its success hinges on one critical factor: the safe, efficient and scalable integration of new air mobility technologies and solutions into our existing airspace system.

     Our strategy to achieve this is built on a disciplined, three-phase approach, and together we mapped out a roadmap that helps us to move from very controlled testing scenarios to real-life, full-scale applications.

     First, we began with conceptualisation and proof of concept. In March this year, we launched our LAE “Regulatory Sandbox”. This initiative marked our practical starting point for integration, inviting enterprises, technology and academic institutions to establish very tightly and well-managed controlled corridors to test real-world applications. The initial results are very promising just over the past nine months. To name a few:
 

• We have achieved a groundbreaking 18-minute cross-sea medical delivery by drone, cutting delivery time by over 60 per cent and proving the efficiency of unmanned logistics.
• Partners like the MTR Corporation (MTR Corporation Limited) are integrating and implementing AI-enabled drone systems for railway infrastructure maintenance, surveillance, and preventive maintenance. In a way, they are creating a smart eye in the sky that enhances both safety and efficiency. 
• Crucially, over a dozen government departments are already adopting low-altitude economy applications by using drones, embedding this new opportunity into the fabric of public services and urban management.

     These are not isolated trials. They are the fundamental and foundational steps in helping us to build trust, reliability and operational data for a shared airspace.

     Second, we are now advancing to consolidation and complex integration through the LAE “Regulatory Sandbox X” scheme, which was just launched two weeks ago. “X” in the project’s name denotes extra complexity and extended scale, so it is really limitless opportunities. Directly aligned with CANSO’s theme, this phase deliberately introduces more sophisticated integration scenarios. We are heading to more challenging scenarios like cross-boundary logistics, using heavier drones and even passenger-carrying drones. Our focus will be on the key modules including an unmanned aircraft traffic management system, eVTOLs and an integrated platform. 

     The fundamental objective of this phase is to address a critical question before us: What creates outsized economic value while maintaining acceptable risk? It serves as our practical, real-world laboratory for pioneering the harmonisation of both air traffic and unmanned air traffic management system.

     And ultimately, our path leads to a codified action plan. By the end of next year, the data and experience from these two phases of “Regulatory Sandbox” schemes will help us to culminate data into a comprehensive action plan. Underpinning this roadmap are two essential enablers.

     First, an adaptive regulatory framework. We have actually, with the help of the past Legislative Council, already started our legislative amendment exercise. We will also embark on an exercise to map out a dedicated law to enable us to advance to a more complex and integrated low-altitude air traffic management and safety system. Compliance is our top priority. It is a guardrail from the start and absolutely will not be a checkpoint at the end. With the successful implementation of the Legislative Council General Election, we are here to work closely with our new elected Legislative Councillors in partnership so as to advance and expedite our law amendment exercise. 

     The second enabler is a collaborative ecosystem for regional leadership. Seamless airspace cannot be achieved in isolation. Hong Kong, with our strengths as an international financial centre and a hub for legal and insurance services, is mobilising our capital and risk-management expertise in order to provide solutions for the entire industry. Furthermore, our position in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area of the Chinese Mainland gives us unrivalled access to world-class manufacturing and R&D (research and development) hubs. This synergy between Hong Kong’s international standards and the region’s innovation capacity creates a perfect launchpad for the low-altitude economy. We are actively engaging in global standard-setting technologies and dialogues, including those with ICAO, to ensure the frameworks we develop contribute to regional and global harmonisation.

     Ladies and gentlemen, our journey follows a simple, evidence-based cadence: plan, test, learn and decide. We are building more than a low-altitude economy; we are building a blueprint for the seamless, safe, innovative and efficient airspace of the future – not just locally, but globally.

     Hong Kong is fully committed to collaborating with all of you – our partners across the Asia-Pacific region and the world – to ensure that our skies remain a realm of limitless opportunities. Together, we will pioneer an airspace where manned and unmanned vehicles integrate seamlessly and safely, fuelling economic growth and connecting our communities in once unimaginable ways.

     Thank you again, and I wish you a very fruitful, positive and collaborative conference today. Thank you very much.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (December 9) that in view of notifications from the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) about outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in the District of Viersen of the State of Nordrhein-Westfalen in Germany, the Columbia-Shuswap Regional District of the Province of British Columbia in Canada, and the East Cambridgeshire District of Cambridgeshire County and the Swale District of Kent County in the United Kingdom (UK), the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from the above-mentioned areas with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

A CFS spokesman said that according to the Census and Statistics Department, in the first nine months of this year, while no poultry meat or eggs were imported into Hong Kong from Canada, Hong Kong imported about 60 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Germany, and about 770 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 1.17 million poultry eggs from the UK.

“The CFS has contacted the German, Canadian and British authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the WOAH and the relevant authorities on the avian influenza outbreaks. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation,” the spokesman said.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health announced that, as of 5pm today (December 9), no new cases of chikungunya fever (CF) had been recorded. Hong Kong has recorded a total of 78 confirmed CF cases this year. Among them, 10 were local cases, and the rest were imported cases. Additionally, as the relevant departments will be conducting more intensive mosquito control and prevention work along the Tsing Yi Nature Trails in the near future, the trails will be closed from tonight to the public until further notice. The CHP advises members of the public not to visit the trails for the time being in order to reduce the risk of contracting CF.
 
     Regarding five local cases of CF who visited the Tsing Yi Nature Trails or the surrounding area, the CHP yesterday (December 8) held an interdepartmental meeting with representatives from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD), the Home Affairs Department, the Drainage Services Department (DSD), the Lands Department, and the Civil Engineering and Development Department (CEDD) to discuss ways to enhance anti-mosquito efforts in the area and safeguard public health.

     The five local cases involve two males and three females aged between 49 and 67. The onset dates of their symptoms were between mid-November and December 2. Epidemiological investigations revealed that the activities of the five patients overlapped at the Tsing Yi Nature Trails and that some of them had reportedly been bitten by mosquitoes there. Among them, the latest case visited the trails on November 29.
 
     Upon receiving notifications of the first case on November 20, the CHP immediately contacted the relevant departments to commence large-scale mosquito prevention and control operations in the vicinity of Tsing Yi. Subsequently, as the sample analysis of some cases have identical genetic sequences, the CHP considered the trails to be a higher-risk area. As early as November 23, the CHP appealed daily through various channels to individuals who had hiked along the Tsing Yi Nature Trails to seek medical attention as soon as possible if they developed relevant symptoms and to call the enquiry hotline (Tel: 2125 2373). In late November, the CHP also informed approximately 130 primary care doctors in Kwai Tsing District through the Primary Healthcare Commission. They were urged to closely monitor whether their patients had compatible symptoms and arrange blood tests for those concerned. The CHP’s Public Health Laboratory Services Branch provides free testing services.
 
     Specifically targeting the vicinity of Tsing Yi Nature Trails, various departments have adopted a series of measures:
 

• The FEHD has co-ordinated mosquito prevention and control efforts among relevant departments and stakeholders in their respective purviews through the interdepartmental task forces on anti-mosquito work across districts. Tools such as large ultra-low volume foggers and robot dogs have been deployed to conduct more than 40 fogging operations to kill adult mosquitoes along the hiking trails, covering the entire trails and the perimeter. The FEHD has also eliminated about 600 potential mosquito breeding sites and applied larvicide oil or larvicides in 80 areas with stagnant water that cannot be removed immediately and installed new mosquito traps. In addition, pamphlets have been distributed to hikers in the area, urging the public to be vigilant against mosquito infestations and take personal protective measures. The FEHD also visited nearby schools and childcare facilities to provide information and assistance on mosquito prevention and control. Furthermore, the FEHD has stepped up inspections of construction sites and residential premises near the trails, instituted two prosecutions against those responsible for violations related to mosquito breeding, and issued eight statutory notices for the elimination of stagnant water.

 

• The Kwai Tsing District Office (K&TDO), which is responsible for the maintenance of the Tsing Yi Nature Trails, has instructed its contractor to enhance mosquito prevention and control measures, including grass cutting, clearing blockages in drainage, conducting fogging operations, and application of larvicide oil or larvicides. In addition, K&TDO has displayed posters at the entrances, pavilions and sitting-out areas along the trails to remind visitors and hikers to use insect repellents and take protective measures. K&TDO also continuously disseminates information on mosquito prevention to residents in the district through the local networks of the District Council Members, Area Committees, and Care Teams.

 

• Since the end of November, the DSD has carried out a number of drainage cleaning operations in the vicinity of the Tsing Yi Nature Trails, removing silt and debris from drainage facilities to ensure the system is functioning and prevent stagnant water and mosquito breeding.

 

• The District Lands Office of Tsuen Wan and Kwai Tsing has removed illegal cultivations, metal canopies, and bamboo sticks on relevant government land. The CEDD has requested contractors and site supervisory staff to arrange site inspections, including its surrounding areas, to ensure that the mosquito prevention measures taken are as effective as possible. Regarding mosquito prevention and control measures, these include conducting regular inspections, removing stagnant water, applying larvicidal oil, and setting up mosquito traps on-site with regular checks and replacement of baits.

     Although relevant departments have conducted a series of mosquito prevention and control operations in the past two to three weeks, there are still members of the public who have been infected after visiting the Tsing Yi Nature Trails, indicating that the risk of infection in the relevant area remains. The Tsing Yi Nature Trails are situated in a countryside environment and cover a vast area, with the hiking trails stretching approximately 7 000 metres. Compared with urban settings, mosquito control work there faces greater challenges. Along both sides of the trails, there are various natural breeding grounds for vectors, including puddles on soil surfaces and fallen leaves, which increase the risk of mosquito breeding.
 
     After discussion yesterday, various departments have further confirmed measures to strengthen mosquito prevention and control in the vicinity of the Tsing Yi Nature Trails. Considering that more intensive anti-mosquito operations will be conducted there, the Tsing Yi Nature Trails will be temporarily closed to the public until further notice. During the period, the FEHD, together with other departments, will further strengthen the intensity and frequency of mosquito prevention and control measures along the Tsing Yi Nature Trails, including continued fogging operations to eliminate adult mosquitoes.

     The CHP will send letters to doctors again and urge them to pay attention to patients’ conditions. In case patients present with relevant symptoms such as fever, joint pain and rash, doctors shall arrange relevant testing as soon as possible.

     Meanwhile, regarding the recently announced local case involving a 23-year-old female living in Sheung Wan, the epidemiological investigation is ongoing. The CHP continues to urge members of the public residing and working at Queen’s Road West (near Morrison Street and Hollywood Road) who experienced a fever, rash or joint pain on or after November 15 to seek medical advice or contact the CHP immediately. CHP officers continue to reach out to individuals in the aforementioned locations to remind individuals to be aware of relevant symptoms and to maintain good environmental hygiene in their households.

     As of 5pm today, the CHP has conducted assessments for over 2 700 individuals residing or working in the district through the health consultation booth at the main entrance of the Sheung Wan Civic Centre, its enquiry hotline (Tel: 2125 2373), questionnaire surveys and door-to-door visits. No new symptomatic persons have been identified in the past four days. Two individuals with mild symptoms previously have been arranged to undergo blood tests. All tested negative for the chikungunya virus.

     The public should call 1823 in case of mosquito problems and may visit the following pages for more information: the CF page of the CHP and the Travel Health Service, the latest Travel Health News, tips for using insect repellents, and the CHP Facebook Page, Instagram Account and YouTube Channel, and also the Mosquito Prevention and Control dedicated page of the FEHD.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Following is the speech by the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Miss Rosanna Law, at the Jockey Club HKCGI (Hong Kong Chartered Governance Institute) Sports Governance Programme: International Symposium on Sports Governance and Integrity today (December 9):

Winfried (Chief Executive Officer of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, Mr Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges), Moray (Executive Director of Security, Integrity and Information Security of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, Mr Moray Taylor-Smith), David (President of the Hong Kong Chartered Governance Institute, Mr David Simmonds), Irene (Assistant Director of Corruption Prevention of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), Ms Irene Wang), Edgar (Honorary Secretary General of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China (SF&OC), Mr Edgar Yang), friends from the sports sector, ladies and gentlemen,

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region