Winnie Ho Attends APNHR 2025 Conference, Discusses Innovative Housing Solutions for Asia-Pacific Challenges

S for Housing attends Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University

The Secretary for Housing, Ms Winnie Ho, attended the Asia-Pacific Network for Housing Research (APNHR) 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University today (June 26).

The APNHR is an international organisation focusing on housing issues in the Asia-Pacific region. The conference was held at Tsinghua University this year with the theme "Towards Resilience and Inclusivity: Adapting to Multifaceted Challenges in the Asia-Pacific Region". The conference convened experts and scholars in the fields of architecture, urban planning, sociology, environmental studies, and others from the Asia-Pacific region to have in-depth exchanges on the housing development and challenges in the region, and to jointly explore ways to promote innovative housing construction and development directions. Participants included professors and students from Tsinghua University and relevant trade representatives.

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Ms Ho attended the roundtable session of the conference in the morning. She shared the opportunities and challenges in housing development faced by the Housing Bureau (HB) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government and the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA). She said that the current-term HKSAR Government has actively addressed Hong Kong's housing problems since taking office, overcoming livelihood issues and addressing people's concerns by identifying sites and enhancing the quantity, speed, efficiency and quality of public housing construction. The HB is working full steam ahead on implementing groundbreaking innovative policy initiatives, such as Light Public Housing (LPH) and Basic Housing Units, to tackle the "long-standing, big and difficult" issue that has plagued Hong Kong for many years and to provide the grassroots with options to improve their living environment and quality of life. The HKHA, established over 50 years ago, has long been providing affordable rental housing to low-income families with housing needs. It continuously enhances the housing ladder to help low- to middle-income families gain access to subsidised home ownership, encouraging them to move up the housing ladder and thus enhance people's sense of contentment and happiness.

Ms Ho said that Hong Kong, with its distinctive advantages of enjoying strong support from the motherland and being closely connected to the world, has leveraged the strengths of the Mainland cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in smart construction. The HB and the HKHA have been making use of various innovative construction technologies, such as Modular Integrated Construction (MiC), construction robots and smart project management platforms, to enhance construction efficiency and build LPH expeditiously, so as to improve the living conditions of those who are inadequately housed as soon as possible.

She also introduced at the conference the "Well-being design" guide launched by the HB and the HKHA last year. It covers eight well-being concepts, namely "Health & Vitality", "Green Living and Sustainability", "Age-Friendliness", "Intergenerational & Inclusive Living", "Family & Community Connection", "Urban Integration", "Upward Mobility" and "Perception & Image". The guide serves as a reference for the future design of new public housing and the improvement works of existing public rental housing estates, with a view to creating a more comfortable and vibrant living environment for public housing tenants. Apart from housing construction, the HKHA has also continued to enhance management efficiency and service quality of its nearly 200 public rental housing estates by actively promoting smart estate management and introducing new technologies to optimise estate management and building maintenance services, to provide a better living environment for its residents.

In the afternoon, Ms Ho visited the Qingtangwan public rental housing project in Beijing. This project is a green residential area that adopted the use of prefabricated components and environmental monitoring platforms, among others, that facilitate energy saving and decarbonisation and promote a low-carbon lifestyle. It also implements smart community management through community apps. This is in line with the HKHA's direction of promoting smart estate management through innovative technologies, which is of reference value to Hong Kong.

Afterwards, Ms Ho met with the Deputy Director-General of the Bureau of International Cooperation of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, Mr Xie Hui, to exchange views on housing design and planning. She also shared the adoption of advanced construction technologies from the Mainland in Hong Kong and the outcomes. She mentioned that this year, under the Housing•I&T initiative, the HB will organise a series of activities and visits, including an international symposium to be held in Hong Kong in November, to showcase to the world the latest developments of construction technologies in Mainland China and Hong Kong. The HB will fully capitalise on Hong Kong's unique advantages of connecting with both the Mainland and the rest of the world and play the role of a "super connector" and a "super value-adder". She expressed hope that friends from around the world could attend the symposium to be hosted by Hong Kong at the end of this year.

Yesterday (June 25), Ms Ho visited the Better House Living Tech Lab and was briefed on the practice of combining housing design concepts of quality homes and technologies on the Mainland. Some examples are the installation of age-friendly facilities such as handrails and sensor lights, and the External Wall Three-Axis Surveillance System for monitoring the old exterior walls' stability, to create a safe and eco-friendly smart living environment.

Ms Ho will continue her visit to Beijing tomorrow (June 27) before returning to Hong Kong.

S for Housing attends Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

S for Housing attends Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

S for Housing attends Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

S for Housing attends Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

S for Housing attends Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

S for Housing attends Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

S for Housing attends Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

S for Housing attends Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

S for Housing attends Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research 2025 Conference at Tsinghua University Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Update on chikungunya fever

The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health announced that, as of 5pm today (January 11), no new cases of chikungunya fever (CF) had been recorded.

Latest surveillance data

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Hong Kong has recorded a total of 82 confirmed CF cases last year. Among them, 11 were local cases, and the rest were imported cases.

Since the beginning of 2025, and as of December 10, 2025, a total of 502 264 CF cases and 186 CF-related deaths have been reported in over 40 countries/territories. Cases have been reported in the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe. Although the northern hemisphere has entered the winter season, temperatures in subtropical and some temperate regions remain elevated due to climate change, creating favourable conditions for mosquito breeding. In addition, CF outbreaks continue to occur in many countries worldwide. The risk of imported cases persists. Members of the public should check the situation of the destinations before travelling abroad, especially when travelling to Southeast Asian countries.

Government's comprehensive follow-up actions

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Given that some local cases of CF have visited the Tsing Yi Nature Trails or the surrounding area in November last year, the trails are currently closed until further notice. Relevant government departments continue to conduct large-scale mosquito control and prevention efforts along the trails, and the CHP appeals to the public not to enter the area in order to reduce the risk of contracting CF and to avoid exposure to chemicals or interfering with the mosquito control operations. Since the confirmation on December 10, 2025, of a case involving a person who had visited the Tsing Yi Nature Trails on November 30, 2025, no further local cases have been recorded to date. The CHP continues to urge individuals who have recently hiked along the Tsing Yi Nature Trails to seek medical attention as soon as possible if they develop relevant symptoms and to call the enquiry hotline (Tel: 2125 2373), which operates from 9am to 6pm.

The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) has been continuously conducting intensive fogging operations to eliminate adult mosquitoes along the Tsing Yi Nature Trails and the surrounding area. At suitable locations, large ultra-low volume foggers have been deployed, and a robot dog is being put on trial to enhance operational effectiveness. The FEHD has also set up new mosquito trapping devices, cleared discarded containers and garbage that could cause stagnant water, and applied larvicide oil or larvicides in areas with stagnant water that cannot be removed immediately. The FEHD has been collaborating with the Kwai Tsing District Office, the Lands Department and the Drainage Services Department to strengthen efforts in eliminating potential mosquito breeding sites along the Tsing Yi Nature Trails. Pamphlets have been distributed to hikers in the area, urging citizens to be vigilant against mosquito infestations and take personal protective measures. The FEHD has also held meetings of the interdepartmental task forces on anti-mosquito work across districts to discuss the latest developments regarding the situation and plan accordingly to co-ordinate relevant departments and stakeholders in strengthening mosquito prevention and control measures in areas under their purview.

Continuously strengthening prevention and control

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The FEHD and relevant departments have comprehensively enhanced the mosquito control operations in Hong Kong since July last year, and this has continued. Among these, the FEHD has conducted vector investigations and targeted mosquito control operations against the imported and local cases. In light of the local case, the FEHD has immediately conducted follow-up actions, including:

carrying out intensive fogging in scrubby areas within a 250-metre radius of the relevant locations to kill adult mosquitoes;

carrying out inspections of the locations, removing stagnant water, applying insecticides and disposing of abandoned water containers every week with a view to preventing mosquito breeding; and

enhancing public education efforts through organising health talks, setting up mobile education stations, and distributing publicity leaflets.

The abovementioned measures will be continued. Furthermore, the Government will further enhance the mosquito control efforts in addition to the existing measures.

Preventive measures to be taken by the public

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Members of the public should use DEET-containing insect repellents or other effective active ingredients properly to prevent mosquito bites, but the following precautions should be taken when using them:

read the label instructions carefully first;

apply right before entering an area with a risk of mosquito bites;

apply on exposed skin and clothing;

use DEET of up to 30 per cent for pregnant women and up to 10 per cent for children (for children who travel to countries or areas where mosquito-borne diseases are endemic or epidemic and where exposure is likely, those aged 2 months or above can use DEET-containing insect repellents with a DEET concentration of up to 30 per cent);

apply sunscreen first, then insect repellent;

reapply only when needed and follow the instructions; and

in addition to DEET, there are other insect repellents available on the market containing different active ingredients, such as IR3535 and picaridin. When using any insect repellent, the public should follow the usage instructions and precautions on the product label.

The FEHD also appeals to members of the public to continue to stay alert and work together to carry out mosquito prevention and control measures early, including inspecting their homes and surroundings to remove potential breeding grounds, changing water in vases and scrubbing their inner surfaces, removing water in saucers under potted plants at least once a week, and properly disposing of containers such as empty cans and lunch boxes. The FEHD also advises members of the public and property management agencies to keep drains free of blockage and level all defective ground surfaces to prevent the accumulation of water. They should also scrub all drains and surface sewers with an alkaline detergent at least once a week to remove any mosquito eggs.

The public should call 1823 in case of mosquito problems, and may visit the following pages for more information: the CF page of theCHPand theTravel Health Service, the latestTravel Health News,tips for using insect repellents, and the CHPFacebook Page,Instagram AccountandYouTube Channel, and also theMosquito Prevention and Control dedicated pageof the FEHD.

Source: AI-found images