City strategy
Hong Kong rolls out 3-phase tourism plan
CMW ROUNDS UP SOME INITIATIVES TAKEN IN HONG KONG
TO GET THE SAR READY FOR BUSINESS AGAIN
ong Kong Special
Administration Region
(SAR) Government has
had to be vigilant from the
outset of the coronavirus outbreak, not
least due to its proximity to the place of
origin of the virus in Wuhan.
A host of measures over the past few
months have been taken aimed at
lowering the possibility of the disease
being imported and spreading in the
community. Measures have included
health declarations and temperature
checks at ports, restrictions on transiting
via or entering Hong Kong, promoting
social distancing, and disease testing and
quarantine arrangements.
At Hong Kong International Airport
(HKIA), they deployed a world-first
full-body disinfection channel
‘CLeanTech’ to prevent infections, on top
of the Intelligent Sterilisation Robots
(ISRs) deployed to sterilise germs and
viruses using a combination of UV light
technology, 360-degree spray nozzles,
and air filters.
AsiaWorld-Expo (AWE) also claimed
to be the world’s first exhibition and
event venue to deploy the same
CLeanTech disinfection installation and
advanced air purification technology,
where CLeanTech is a three-in-one
disinfection installation combining a
suite of technologies including BioEm
Air Sanitising and Purifying technology,
Aegis Intelligence and negative room
pressure design.
Measures for MICE
The territory’s government has allocated
additional funding from the 2020-21
Budget for strengthening support to the
travel trade and has rolled out relief
measures for the MICE sector under the
Anti-epidemic Fund, including a subsidy
of US$130m to support the exhibition
and convention industry.
The scheme is able to help event
organisers with 100% venue rental cost,
for all exhibitions and international
conventions (with over 400 participants
and at least 50% of delegates from
outside of Hong Kong) held at the
HKCEC and another major venue in
Hong Kong over the next 12 months.
On 24 April, the Hong Kong Tourism
Board (HKTB) organised a web
conference to update on tourism
development and introduce the HKTB’s
strategic framework of recovery plan.
That was attended by close to 1,500
representatives from travel agencies,
attractions, hotels, airlines, the retail and
dining sectors, as well as MICE.
“In the post-pandemic world, we will
see a shift in preference and behaviour
among travellers – the public health
conditions of destinations, and the
hygiene standards of transportation
providers, hotels and other tourism
facilities will become a top priority;
people will prefer short-haul breaks and
shorter itineraries; wellness-themed trips
will become a new trend. It is in fact an
ideal time for us to review and rethink
Hong Kong’s position in the global
tourism market and elevate service
standards. Together with the travel
trade, the Hong Kong Tourism Board
(HKTB) is going to map out the
long-term development strategy for our
tourism industry,” HKTB Chairman Dr
YK Pang told the conference.
The HKTB had announced earlier
that it would be allocating HK$400m
(US$51.6m) to support promotions by
the trade.
HKTB Executive Director Dane
Cheng explained the plan for
reinvigorating Hong Kong tourism
would be rolled out in three phases:
‘Resilience, Recovery and Relaunch’.
Under Phase one – Resilience – the
HKTB is preparing a recovery plan for
Hong Kong’s tourism industry.
In Phase two – Recovery – when the
pandemic shows signs of abating, HKTB
will first focus on local market and
encourage locals to rediscover different
neighbourhoods and community as part
of a plan to restore confidence in the city.
HKTB will also launch tactical
promotions with the trade in selected
overseas markets.
When Phase three – Relaunch –
occurs, the HKTB says there will be
some mega events and a new tourism
brand campaign launched to rebuild
Hong Kong’s image.
The exact timelines will depend on
the development of the pandemic.
Above: Hong Kong
AsiaWorld-Expo’s
CLeanTech
(Photo courtesy of
AsiaWorld-Expo)
Below: HKTB
Chairman Dr YK
Pang (left) and
Executive Director
Dane Cheng
(right)
ISSUE 106
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CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD
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