Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award Recognises Exemplary Construction Safety Performance in Hong Kong

Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award recognises exemplary construction safety performance

The Labour Department (LD) and the Occupational Safety and Health Council (OSHC) jointly held the Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award 2026 (the Award) Forum and Award Presentation Ceremony today (October 9) to recognise organisations and frontline workers excelling in occupational safety and health (OSH) management and practices, and to further enhance the safety culture within the construction industry. The Award Presentation Ceremony was officiated by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, and the Chairman of the OSHC, Dr David Mong.

The LD and the OSHC launched the new Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award this year by integrating the Construction Industry Safety Award Scheme and the Construction Safety Promotional Campaign, which have been implemented for over 20 years. Supported and co-organised by various government departments, organisations, trade associations and labour unions, the new Award aims at promoting continuous improvement in OSH performance across the industry.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Sun said that the Government attaches great importance to the OSH of the construction industry and has carried out extensive preventive work. Based on a risk-based principle, the LD will continue to formulate and adjust strategies in a timely manner through a multipronged approach covering inspection and enforcement, publicity and promotion, education and training, as well as innovative technology applications to promote OSH culture and enhance OSH performance. He said that the new Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award can create a synergy effect, attracting more contractors, teams and workers to actively participate, as well as further driving the industry to continuously improve its OSH performance.

The themes of this year's Award are "Fall Prevention on Construction Sites", "Safe Operation of Heavy Machinery" and "Good Housekeeping on Construction Sites" with a total of nine award categories. The Award event received enthusiastic support from contractors, teams and workers which recorded over 800 entries. Awards were presented to 25 organisations, 23 teams and 97 workers. Another highlight of the Award event was the Forum held before the Award Presentation Ceremony in which representatives of the shortlisted organisations shared their valuable experiences in implementing workplace safety measures and promoting construction safety culture, encouraging industry members to learn from one another and promote good safety practices to other construction sites.

For details of the Award and the list of awardees, please visit the Award's website (www.oshc.org.hk/eng/main/awards_campaigns/cisea_2026).

The Labour Department and the Occupational Safety and Health Council jointly held the Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award 2026 Forum and Award Presentation Ceremony today (October 9). Photo shows the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun (centre), presenting the Award to awardees. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Labour Department and the Occupational Safety and Health Council (OSHC) jointly held the Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award 2026 Forum and Award Presentation Ceremony today (October 9). Photo shows the Chairman of the OSHC, Dr David Mong (centre), presenting the Award to awardees. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Labour Department and the Occupational Safety and Health Council (OSHC) jointly held the Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award 2026 Forum and Award Presentation Ceremony today (October 9). Photo shows the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun (first row, centre); the Chairman of the OSHC, Dr David Mong (first row, fifth left); the Commissioner for Labour, Mr Sam Hui (first row, fifth right), and other guests at the ceremony. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Labour Department and the Occupational Safety and Health Council (OSHC) jointly held the Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award 2026 Forum and Award Presentation Ceremony today (October 9). Photo shows the Chairman of the OSHC, Dr David Mong, delivering a speech at the ceremony. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Labour Department and the Occupational Safety and Health Council jointly held the Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award 2026 Forum and Award Presentation Ceremony today (October 9). Photo shows the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, delivering a speech at the ceremony. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CEDB briefs Trade and Industry Advisory Board on Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and Policy Address

The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau, briefed members of the Trade and Industry Advisory Board on major initiatives related to economic and trade developments in the First Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (2026-2030) (Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan) and the Chief Executive's 2026 Policy Address (Policy Address) at a meeting today (October 12).

Mr Yau said that based on the overall plan and development blueprint of Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan, the Policy Address this year has rolled out a series of initiatives to strengthen Hong Kong's position and role as an international trade centre, and deepen its development as a regional intellectual property (IP) trading centre by leveraging the city's international advantages, creating more opportunities for the industrial and commercial sectors.

Mr Yau highlighted that despite the challenges brought about by geopolitics and trade protectionism, Hong Kong's external trade has demonstrated strong resilience. In 2025, Hong Kong ranked as the world's fifth-largest trading entity. Since the beginning of this year, Hong Kong has recorded encouraging results in merchandise exports, with the total export value in August recording a year-on-year increase of 53 per cent, marking the 19th consecutive month of double-digit growth.

In this regard, he shared with the members the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government's multipronged measures to continuously expand international economic and trade networks to consolidate and enhance Hong Kong's role as an international trade centre. Meanwhile, the HKSAR Government will promote the high-quality development of trade by pursuing upgrades with the goal of achieving "digitalisation" and "diversification", and also develop Hong Kong into a high value-added supply chain service centre to assist enterprises in connecting with overseas supply chains and expanding their international businesses, capitalising on Hong Kong's strengths in professional services.

Mr Yau added that in response to the National 15th Five-Year Plan expressly supporting Hong Kong's development into a regional IP trading centre, the HKSAR Government is pressing ahead with the development of a vibrant IP ecosystem through a number of complementary measures, such as the launch of the Intellectual Property Financing Sandbox, the introduction of the Pilot Patent Valuation Support Scheme, the setting up of the Hong Kong Intellectual Property Academy and the establishment of the Strategy Committee on Intellectual Property Trading Development, with a view to strengthening the foundation for Hong Kong's development into a regional IP trading centre.

In addition, Mr Yau noted that the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which account for 98 per cent of the total number of enterprises in Hong Kong, is of great importance to Hong Kong's economic development. As such, thePolicy Address announced 10 measures to support the diversified development of SMEs, as well as their upgrading and transformation.

Among these, the funding ceiling of "Easy BUD" applications under the Dedicated Fund on Branding, Upgrading and Domestic Sales (BUD Fund) has been increased to $150,000. The BUD Fund also provides more targeted funding support for AI projects, and the geographical scope of the BUD Fund will be expanded to cover Uzbekistan and Qatar. Moreover, the Trade and Industry Department will co-ordinate with the "Four-in-One" Integrated Services of SME Centres to assist SMEs in formulating brand development strategies. The Hong Kong Trade Development Council will also strengthen the services of the E-Commerce Express, raising awareness of Hong Kong brands and expanding their coverage in e-commerce markets outside Hong Kong.

With Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and the Policy Address as action plans, Mr Yau looks forward to working hand in hand with the trade to further promote Hong Kong's economic and trade developments, particularly advancing the development of the Northern Metropolis and assisting Mainland enterprises in going global, with a view to reinforcing Hong Kong's important role as a "super connector" and "super value-adder" while injecting new impetus into the city's economy.

CEDB briefs Trade and Industry Advisory Board on Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and Policy Address Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CEDB briefs Trade and Industry Advisory Board on Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and Policy Address Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases