*********************************************************
The Permanent Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Mrs Carrie Yau, will lead a delegation to Beijing to attend a special meeting on avian influenza held by China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on March 2.
Members of the delegation include the Deputy Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Dr Mak Sin-ping; and Acting Deputy Director of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation, Mr Lau Sin-pang.
"The meeting will provide a forum for participants to take stock of the current situation in Asia and exchange their experience on the prevention and control of the disease," Mrs Yau said.
Mrs Yau will also take the opportunity to call on the State General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine to exchange views on the resumption of importation of chilled and frozen poultry meat from the Mainland. The Deputy Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Mr Eddy Chan, and the Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Mr Gregory Leung, will also join the visit for the discussions.
Mrs Yau will depart for Beijing tomorrow (March 1) and return to Hong Kong on March 3.
Ends/Sunday, February 29, 2004
NNNN
