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    Following is the speech by Deputy Postmaster General, Mrs Joanna Choi, at the 6th Inter-School Stamp Exhibits Competition Award Presentation and Exhibition Opening Ceremony today (March 24):

Mr Wardlaw, heads of Guangdong Postal Bureau and philatelic associations of Guangdong, friends from local philatelic societies, principals, teachers, students and distinguished guests,

    Welcome to the 6th Inter-School Stamp Exhibits Competition Award Presentation and Exhibition Opening Ceremony. First of all, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to the Education and Manpower Bureau and the Hong Kong Museum of History for their untiring support. Special thanks must also be given to the four local philatelic societies for their great help in adjudicating and organising workshop sessions for us, not to mention the many exhibits on loan to us for display. Moreover, I am very much obliged to the Guangdong Philately Association for lending us demonstration exhibits produced by mainland youngsters. The ardent support from all of you is vital to the success of the competition and the exhibition.

    Stamp collecting is a healthy, affordable and educational hobby that Hongkong Post has all along been committed to promoting among youngsters. A stamp exhibit is a presentation of a story through stamp products and narratives based on a thematic approach. By producing stamp exhibits, students can be more knowledgeable not only in philately but also in the culture and history of Hong Kong as well as other places in the world. Also, they acquire better writing skills, as they need to express themselves clearly in the exhibits. In all, it is a meaningful extra-curricular activity and brings much benefit to students when doing their topical research.

    We attach great importance to philately promotion, and the Inter-School Stamp Exhibits Competition is one of our annual large-scale activities on this purpose. With the support from schools, teachers and students, many outstanding entries were received in previous years. This year, a total of 137 frames of stamp exhibits were received from 110 entries. It is very gratifying to see such a positive response especially at the sight of those excellent entries. They are better than ever. I am sure that our panel judges should have noticed their great improvement. All entries will be displayed in public as usual to encourage students to actively participate in this meaningful activity. The exhibition will be held from March 24 to 28 during the Easter holidays for the public to appreciate these unique and creative works. Following this exhibition, the exhibits will be displayed in our Postal Gallery on the ground floor of the General Post Office from March 31 onwards.

    Stamp exhibits are not only popular in Hong Kong but also well liked in the mainland. Thanks to the Guangdong Philately Association, 44 frames of demonstration exhibits are on loan to us for display. All are quality exhibits produced by mainland youngsters, some of them even claimed titles at national competitions which should be admired not only by the students but also other stamp collectors. We believe that exposure to other philatelic culture will broaden the horizons of our students, help enhance the quality of their work and shed new light on their production. We are looking forward to better performance next year.

    Lastly, I hope that all winners and their schools will keep up with their good work and continue to produce more interesting stamp exhibits afterwards.  Congratulations to you all!

    Thank you.

Ends/Thursday, March 24, 2005

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