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Following is a question by the Hon Frederick Fung and a written reply by the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Tsang Tak-sing, in the Legislative Council today (June 11):
Question :
It has been learnt that the Leisure and Cultural Services Department is conducting a detailed survey on the participation patterns of Hong Kong people in physical activities, and the survey is to be conducted in two phases in May and September this year in the form of face-to-face household interviews. The survey also includes a Government-commissioned study conducted by a university in Hong Kong on patterns of and data on participation in sports by people overseas, which has been completed earlier. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of:
(a) the purpose, scope and other details of the entire survey mentioned above; the preliminary results of the study on patterns of participation in sports by people overseas, and when the entire survey is expected to be completed as well as when the results are expected to be announced; and
(b) the timetable for taking corresponding actions (including formulating future objectives and strategies for promoting sports, as well as introducing specific measures to encourage more members of the public to participate in sports and promote a culture of passion for sports in the community, etc.) in the light of the results of the above survey?
Reply :
Madam President,
(a) and (b) The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) is committed to providing diversified community sport services for the public and encouraging their active participation in sporting activities across all sectors of the community to promote the culture of Sport for All. The LCSD has commissioned a study on Participation Patterns of Hong Kong People in Physical Activities last year to collect data on public participation in physical activities in the community to gauge the level of their participation in order to measure the effectiveness of the efforts being put into promoting Sport for All.
The study comprises two phases: a consultancy study and a questionnaire survey. The consultancy study was completed in January this year. Relevant documents collected from 11 countries/regions including Australia, Canada, the UK, the USA, the European Union, China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong were studied to provide reference for establishing the definition of Sport for All and a set of indicators for measuring the effectiveness of the efforts being put into promoting Sport for All.
According to the findings of the first phase of the consultancy study, most of the countries/regions studied recognise the importance of physical activities to the community as well as individuals, and put efforts into encouraging the public to actively participate in physical activities for health maintenance and improvement. They all recognise that the promotion of Sport for All requires the concerted efforts of the whole society involving government authorities and non-government organisations such as schools, national sports associations and local organisations, and that people from different social strata, regardless of gender, age, class, ability and social status, should have equal opportunity to participate in physical activities. Most of the countries/regions share the view that regular participation in physical activities is beneficial to health. The threshold for health attainment is at least 30 minutes of physical activities of moderate intensity for three times a week. The questionnaire survey is scheduled to be conducted in two phases in May and September this year. About 4,000 domestic households are selected for face-to-face interviews by random sampling.
At the last stage, the consultant will compile a report by consolidating the data collected from the consultancy study and the survey, and propose feasible options for the participation patterns of Hong Kong people in physical activities and the direction of future development of community sports. The whole study is expected to be completed by the end of this year. In the light of the feasible options proposed in the consultancy report, the LCSD will put forward recommendations on the setting of objectives and strategies for further promotion of community sports for discussion by the Sports Commission and its Community Sports Committee.
Ends/Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Issued at HKT 14:44
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