IN YOUR BACKYARD
SLOW SEASON Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) announced in mid-February that Hong Kong received 3.2 million visitor arrivals in January, a daily average of 100,000, dropping 53% from 200,000 in the first half of 2019. While average daily arrivals recovered to 130,000 with the pre-Chinese New
AT A LOSS Year rush in January, the outbreak of COVID-19 aggravated the decline once again and visitors plunged to 65,000 a day in late January. Find out more on discoverhongkong.com, where HKTB is providing instant updates on the latest measures to assist visitors.
Classes for preschool, primary and secondary schools have been suspended since Chinese New Year and will not resume until midMarch. Because of this, nearly 70 percent of Hong Kong kindergartens have reported that parents are refusing to pay education fees, according to the Professional Teachers’ Union (PTU). The union also found more than 40 percent of kindergartens have predicted serious financial issues if the situation continued and some even warned of closures. Many kindergartens, especially private ones that do not receive government subsidies, are struggling to maintain daily operations while paying staff salaries and rent. The Education Bureau has said that it understood the challenges faced by kindergartens and would assist them where possible.
ON A BREAK Cathay Pacific’s beloved fanfares, which typically go live on the company’s website every Tuesday morning, have been suspended for an indefinite amount of time. Cathay states that the programme “is taking a short break for network and schedule adjustments”. Stay tuned for any updates on their Facebook page at facebook.com/cathaypacificHK
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