Second Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival opens today to present city's diverse pop culture

Discover hong kong's vibrant pop culture scene at the second annual festival!

The second Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival opens today (April 6) at the central lawn of Victoria Park. Members of the public are given the opportunity to explore the multifaceted charm of Hong Kong's pop culture in interesting and interactive ways. Presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, this year's festival is themed around "Arts and Action", taking audiences on a journey through time to experience the dynamic inheritance, diffusion, integration and breakthroughs of the city's pop culture.

Officiating at the opening ceremony today were the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr Kevin Yeung; Legislative Council Members Ms Joephy Chan and Mr Kenneth Fok; the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Mr Vincent Liu; and the Chairman of the Museum Advisory Committee, Professor Douglas So. Curated by celebrated fashion designer Dorian Ho, the ceremony was a creative fusion of fashion with film, martial arts, comics, music, dance and more. Singer Gin Lee's performance of rearranged film tunes, combined with a fashion show powered by artificial intelligence, created a unique and stylish atmosphere. Martial arts athletes Lau Chi-lung, Lydia Sham and Samuei Hui brought freshness to literary classics as they turned themselves into martial heroes from Jin Yong's novels, demonstrating their skills together with other young talents in front of an LED comics backdrop.

　　The opening programme "ImagineLand" started immediately after the opening ceremony. Sponsored by Create Hong Kong, this large-scale outdoor music carnival is held from noon to 10pm today and tomorrow (April 6 and 7). Daytime programmes include "Gen S Concert" starring over 50 units of singer-songwriters from different regions, including Miu Sakamoto, daughter of Japanese maestro Ryuichi Sakamoto; RHYME SO from Japan/Australia; Meaningful Stone from Korea; and Taiga from Mainland China. Also on the lineup are distinguished singer-songwriters of different eras, namely Lowell Lo, Samantha Lam, AGA Kong, Mansonvibes and many more. A series of crossovers highlight the continued development of Hong Kong's pop music as music-makers tirelessly pass the legacy down to younger generations. "Memory Lane", another daytime offering, makes use of film set, role play and costumes to re-enact classic scenes in "Kung Fu Hustle" and "A Guilty Conscience", whereas "Funarts Corner" gives visitors firsthand experience with music, arts tech and handicrafts in its booth activities. Evening programme "Movie Under the Stars", showing "Zu: Warriors from the Magic Mountain" (4K digitally restored version, 1983) and "A Chinese Odyssey Part Two: Cinderella" (1995) in two consecutive nights respectively, allows carnival-goers to appreciate classical movies on the grass.

　　Apart from "ImagineLand", the second edition of the festival offers a broad range of programmes, their formats covering stage performance, thematic exhibition, film screening, and library and outreach activities. Its rich content spans across literature, various art forms and martial arts, clearly showcasing how Hong Kong's vibrant and diverse pop culture stands out from the rest.

Many programmes this year are dedicated to three masters - literary legend Jin Yong, famed lyricist James Wong and composer Joseph Koo. These include "A Path to Glory - Jin Yong's Centennial Memorial, Sculpted by Ren Zhe"; the classic martial arts drama costumes and props exhibition under the "Arts or Action, Why Not Both?" series; "A Laugh at the World: James Wong" exhibition; "ART!ON POP Concert"; "The Godfather of Cantopop - Joseph Koo" and "Martial Arts．Heroes" Chinese music concerts; and library activities namely "Music Document Highlights of Joseph Koo & James Wong", and "Exhibition on Dr Louis Cha Collection and Subject Talk on Jin Yong's Works".

　　Other major offerings include "Of Fists and Swords - Kaleidoscope of Hong Kong Martial Arts Films"; "Coming to a Theatre Near You - Gems of Hong Kong Film Trailers"; "Fame in a Flash - A Tour of AVON Recording Studios"; "From Arts to Action Music Concert" and "ICH Extraordinary: Chinese Martial Arts and Films" kung fu demonstration under the "Arts or Action, Why Not Both?" series.

　　The Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival 2024 offers a wide array of programmes, offering a blend of dynamism and relaxation, East and West, old and new. For more details, please visit the festival website at www.pcf.gov.hk/en or call 2601 8703.

Second Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival opens today to present city's diverse pop culture Souce: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Second Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival opens today to present city's diverse pop culture Souce: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Second Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival opens today to present city's diverse pop culture Souce: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Second Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival opens today to present city's diverse pop culture Souce: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Second Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival opens today to present city's diverse pop culture Souce: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Second Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival opens today to present city's diverse pop culture Souce: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Government announces extension of Elderly Health Care Voucher Greater Bay Area Pilot Scheme to cover all nine Mainland cities in GBA

The Government announced today (May 2) the extension of the Elderly Health Care Voucher Greater Bay Area Pilot Scheme to include 12 additional medical institutions in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), with a view to offering more convenience for eligible Hong Kong elderly persons to use Elderly Health Care Vouchers (EHCVs) in the GBA. The number of pilot medical institutions under the Pilot Scheme will be significantly increased from the current seven to 19, covering all the nine Mainland cities in the GBA. Together with the two existing service points operated by the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital (HKU-SZH), a total of 21 service points in the GBA will be allowed to use EHCVs, benefitting more than 1.78 million eligible Hong Kong elderly persons.

All the 12 medical institutions newly included in the Pilot Scheme (see Annex for details) are Tier III Class A hospitals providing integrated healthcare services (including dental services). They are:

GBA city

Name of medical institution

Guangzhou

Guangdong Clifford Hospital

Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine

Shenzhen

(including the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Co-operation Zone)

Shenzhen Hospital of Southern Medical University

Peking University Shenzhen Hospital

Zhuhai

The FifthAffiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University

Zhuhai People’s Hospital

Foshan

The First People’s Hospital of Foshan

The Eighth Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University

(Previously: Shunde Hospital of Southern Medical University)

Huizhou

Huizhou Central People’s Hospital

Zhongshan

Zhongshan Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Jiangmen

Jiangmen Central Hospital

Zhaoqing

The First People's Hospital of Zhaoqing

The Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, said, "The main purpose of implementing the Pilot Scheme is to offer more convenience and flexibility for eligible Hong Kong elderly persons by providing more service points for them to better use their EHCVs for primary healthcare services to improve their health. The service points of the Pilot Scheme are meticulously planned to extend to GBA cities that are not yet covered, namely Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing, as well as to set up additional service points in the GBA cities that are already covered. The extension of the Pilot Scheme also includes Chinese medicine hospitals for the first time to provide eligible elderly persons with additional choices in healthcare services.

"I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the Health Commission of Guangdong Province (GDHC) and the health authorities of relevant cities for providing us invaluable advice and tremendous help on selecting suitable medical institutions and the regulations relevant to the monitoring of healthcare quality and fee level, among others, during the implementation of the Pilot Scheme."

The Chief Executive's 2024 Policy Address announced the extension of the Pilot Scheme to cover nine Mainland cities in the GBA last October. The Health Bureau (HHB) and the Department of Health (DH) have thereafter promptly taken forward the relevant work proactively, including seeking advice and recommendations from the GDHC, inviting medical institutions to briefing sessions, and conducting site visits.

The service scope eligible for claims for the EHCVs at medical institutions under the Pilot Scheme will be largely the same. The arrangements for shared use of EHCVs between spouses and the EHCV Pilot Reward Scheme are also applicable. Moreover, eligible elderly persons have to register with eHealth. The "Cross-boundary Health Record" and "Personal Folder" functions of the eHealth mobile application will also be applicable to the medical institutions under the Pilot Scheme, with a view to offering convenience for Hong Kong citizens to self-carry their electronic health records for cross-boundary uses.

To ensure the proper use of public money, the DH adopts a robust monitoring mechanism for checking and auditing EHCV claims, including routine checking, monitoring and investigating in respect of aberrant transactions, and investigations into complaints. In the monitoring issues and investigations of the Pilot Scheme, apart from the above measures, the DH has established a mechanism with the health authorities of the Mainland, through which the health authorities of the Mainland will provide assistance to the DH when necessary, with a view to enhancing its monitoring capabilities and ensuring the proper reimbursement of EHCV claims to the participating medical institutions under the Pilot Scheme.

The HHB and the DH are working on the follow-up arrangements with various new pilot medical institutions, such as personnel training, financial arrangements and system configuration. It is expected that the new pilot medical institutions will gradually launch the relevant arrangements by the fourth quarter of this year.

Launched by the Government in 2009, the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme (EHVS) currently subsidises eligible Hong Kong elderly persons aged 65 and above with an annual voucher amount of $2,000 (with the accumulation limit set at $8,000) for them to choose in their own community private primary healthcare services that best suit their health needs. The Government launched the Pilot Scheme last year to extend the coverage of EHCVs to suitable medical institutions in the GBA. As at September of the same year, the coverage of EHCVs has been extended to seven integrated medical/dental institutions located in Guangzhou, Zhongshan, Dongguan and Shenzhen.

Members of the public may refer to the EHVS website (www.hcv.gov.hk) or call the hotline (2838 2311) for more information on EHVS.