Government continues to follow up on incident regarding powdered infant formula found with lead possibly exceeding limit, with no cases of lead poisoning in infants or young children due to consumption of powdered infant formula identified so far
The Department of Health (DH) today (August 26) said that since receiving a notification in late July from the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department that the product Frisolac Prestige Stage 1 Infant Formula (batch number: 1W07KPJ) had been found by the Macao authority with lead possibly exceeding the permissible level in Macao, the DH has been actively following up on the health conditions of infants and young children who consumed the relevant batch of powdered infant formula. No cases of lead poisoning in infants or young children resulting from consumption of the affected powdered infant formula have been identified.
Prestige Stage 1 Infant Formula, Photo source: reference image
In response to the incident, the DH set up a telephone hotline (2125 1199) on July 26 to answer public enquiries relating to the health condition of infants and young children, as well as the switching of infant formulas. Cases were referred to the Hospital Authority (HA) for follow-up as and when necessary. As of noon today, the DH's hotline and Maternal and Child Health Centres have received 762 relevant enquiries. Based on individual circumstances, the DH provided advice on switching infant formulas, and referred 446 infants and young children to the HA for assessment and follow-ups. Among them, 237 have undergone clinical assessments. Results indicated that their overall health is good and that none have shown signs of lead poisoning. Regarding the cases not assessed, the main reasons were that parents decided not to proceed with further assessment and a small number of cases are still pending assessment.
The Department of Health, Photo source: reference image
According to the CFS, it has stepped up the surveillance of lead content in powdered infant and follow-up formula in the market. To date, no cases have been found to exceed Hong Kong's statutory standard for lead.
Given that the hotline set up by the DH specifically for this incident has received only a small number of enquiries in recent weeks, the hotline will cease operations at 6pm on August 28. If parents notice that their infants or young children are feeling unwell, or if parents have any concerns, they should seek advice from healthcare professionals as soon as possible. For information on health advice regarding the switch to alternative infant formula, the public may visit the DH's webpage for details.
SCS meets Administrative Service Internship Programme student interns and announces Programme expansion to cover all university students
The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, met today (August 26) with over 50 university students participating in this year's Administrative Service Internship Programme, and listened to their sharing of internship experiences and learning outcomes. She encouraged them to apply for civil service positions such as the Administrative Officer (AO) post, where they can leverage their strengths and contribute to society.
She said that the Programme has been well received by university students in recent years, with nearly 600 applications collected over the past year. To enable more young people at different stages of study to learn about public service and plan their career development at an early stage, the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) has decided to expand the eligibility for the Programme to all full-time students pursuing undergraduate or postgraduate studies, regardless of their year of study, starting from this year's Winter Internship Programme.
At the gathering, Mrs Yeung listened to the interns share their work experiences and proposed policy initiatives. Drawing on her own civil service experience, she shared her insights and encouraged the interns to seize the opportunity to deepen their understanding of public administration, policy formulation and cross-departmental collaboration, with a view to contributing to the development of the country and Hong Kong in the future.
The Permanent Secretary for the Civil Service, Ms Shirley Lam, and Deputy Secretary for the Civil Service Ms Elaine Mak also joined the gathering and spoke with interns to learn about their internship experiences and views on public policy formulation.
Under the arrangements made by the CSB, the interns were assigned to various bureaux and departments for practical experience and to gain a deeper understanding of government operations. Drawing on their internship experiences, they also took part in group discussions and put forward policy initiatives on a range of social issues, including transport, tourism, green finance, innovation and technology, youth and district affairs, and elderly welfare.
Mrs Yeung added that from their sharing, the interns had brought fresh perspectives to the team. She said AOs are required to develop skills to handle a wide range of matters, respond promptly to emergencies, and deal with issues with flexibility and a holistic perspective. Although the work is challenging, it enables AOs to serve the public and promote the stable development of society. She also took the opportunity to appeal to responsible young people who aspire to serve the community to join the civil service.
AOs are professional public administrators who play a pivotal role in the Government. They are responsible for assisting in the formulation of public policies, co-ordinating and supervising various policy initiatives, managing the use of public resources, promoting district work and publicising Hong Kong externally, etc. To enable AOs to accumulate experience and unleash their potential in different public policy areas, they are posted to various bureaux and departments at regular intervals, thereby broadening their horizons and gaining a fuller grasp of the challenges and opportunities in public administration.
The CSB organises the Administrative Service Internship Programme every summer and winter, offering students who aspire to become AOs opportunities to work alongside serving AOs for around eight weeks. It allows interns to gain practical experience of working in the Government at an early stage, and lay a foundation for their future career development.
The Government will launch a new round of recruitment for the posts of AO, Executive Officer II, Assistant Information Officer (General), Assistant Trade Officer II, Management Services Officer II and Transport Officer II in September this year. Prospective applicants must first take the Common Recruitment Examination and the Basic Law and National Security Law Test, and attain the requisite scores. For the latest recruitment information of the CSB, please refer to the CSB website (www.csb.gov.hk).
Source: AI-found images
