The Chief Secretary for Administration, Mrs Carrie Lam, visited Tsuen Wan District this afternoon (July 14). She exchanged views with members of the Tsuen Wan District Council (TWDC), met with members of the Tsuen Wan District Youth Corps (TWDYC), and visited a day care centre for the elderly with dementia as well as a rental housing project for grass-roots families facing difficulty in finding a home.
      
     Mrs Lam started the visit by meeting with TWDC members. She listened to their views on district issues such as transport, environment, community facilities, etc.
      
     Accompanied by the Chairman of the TWDC, Mr Chung Wai-ping, and the District Officer (Tsuen Wan), Miss Jenny Yip, Mrs Lam then visited the Gene Hwa Lee Centre of the Hong Kong Alzheimer’s Disease Association. She was briefed by the Chairman of the Association, Dr David Dai, on Project Sunrise, a three-year pilot programme supported and sponsored by Lee Hysan Foundation. Under a community-based shared care model, it aims to identify people for early diagnosis of dementia and streamline the diagnosis procedure to seize the golden period for treatment.
      
     During her visit to the cognitive training group of the Centre, Mrs Lam chatted with the participating elderly people. She said she was pleased to know that the programme provides subsidies to patients with financial difficulties to receive drug and non-drug treatments, thereby contributing to the city’s work in poverty alleviation and elderly care.

     Later, Mrs Lam visited the Empowerment Housing project in Sham Tseng run by the social enterprise Light Be. The Light Home in Sham Tseng was previously a vacant quarters building. It was renovated and is leased out by Light Be to families with housing problems at affordable rents for terms of up to three years. During the lease periods, in addition to offering assistance in addressing the housing needs, Light Be will provide to these families diversified support, including arrangements for further studies, job referrals and tutoring for children, enabling the families to become self-reliant.
      
     Mrs Lam, joined by the Chairman of Light Be, Mr Laurence Li, and the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Light Be, Mr Ricky Yu, visited a tenant family. She commended Light Be for making good use of resources innovatively and for providing assistance to families in urgent need, strengthening their confidence and self-reliance capability to help alleviate poverty.
      
     Afterwards, Mrs Lam met the youths of the TWDYC. She listened to their views on their future and the future of society as well as their experience in participating in the Corps’ activities. The TWDYC, established by the Tsuen Wan District Office in June 2014, aims to broaden youths' horizons and develop their potential through training activities and programmes and community services as well as encourage them to participate in community affairs.
  

Ends/Thursday, July 14, 2016
Issued at HKT 19:55

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