New 'happy' Campaign Offers Food Fairs, Carnival

The government will organise a series of events targeting the general public under its new “Happy Hong Kong” campaign, Financial Secretary Paul Chan announced on Wednesday.

Chan said the initiative will bring “more joy to the community” through providing people opportunities to share happy and enjoyable moments together.

“The campaign will focus on activities related to gourmet experiences, fun amusements and exciting ambience. Apart from providing members of the public with more diverse choices of fun and interesting activities in Hong Kong, it will also help stimulate local consumption and boost our economy,” Chan said.

He did not specify a price tag for the scheme.

The announcement of the new campaign came just weeks after the government unveiled the “Hello Hong Kong” promotional drive to lure visitors to the city, which includes handing out hundreds of thousands of free plane tickets.

Under "Happy Hong Kong", officials will launch a “Gourmet Marketplace” in the coming months under which large-scale food fairs will be organised across the territory for the public and visitors to enjoy the delicacies from the city, the mainland and around the world.

A mega sea and land carnival will be held in the summer with Victoria Harbour as the stage, which features dancing, music and street performances from around the world, along with a brand new lighting show.

The West Kowloon Cultural District Authority, Ocean Park and Disneyland will be among organisations holding themed fairs, carnivals and other activities this year.

Separately, Chan announced new schemes to offer fully guaranteed loans for eligible passenger transport operators and licensed travel agents.

The schemes, expected to launch in April, are estimated to involve a total loan amount of about HK$2.7 billion.

Authorities will extend the Travel Agents Incentive Scheme – due to expire by next month – for three months, while injecting HK$30 million to a scheme encouraging the industry to undergo upgrade and transformation with the use of technology.