185. The Government will continue to allocate substantial resources to the development of art, culture and sports. We granted a one-off upfront endowment of $21.6 billion in 2008 to the West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD) Authority for the implementation of the WKCD project. We also injected $3 billion into the Arts and Sport Development Fund in 2010 and received approval to set up a $7 billion "Elite Athletes Development Fund" in 2011 in support of the long-term development of sports, art and culture.
186. The Government’s expenditure on art and culture in 2012-13 will exceed $3 billion. In 2012-13, we shall provide a total of $40 million additional funds for nine major performing arts groups, bringing the total amount of funding to over $300 million, an increase of almost 40 per cent compared with 2007-08. Efforts have also been made to upgrade and promote museum service and organise major exhibitions for audience building. Expenditure on museum exhibitions and public art in 2012-13 will be about $85 million.
187. Since 2007, four new libraries have come into service. In 2009, the Government extended and standardised the opening days of major and district libraries in the territory to seven days a week, with weekly opening hours of 71 hours. The annual recurrent expenditure on library services has increased by $34 million since then.
188. On sports development, we are promoting "sport for all" in the community. Since 2007-08, a total of more than $600 million has been spent on organising recreational and sports activities in the community. Through the School Sports Programme, we also encourage students of primary, secondary and special schools to participate regularly in sports activities. In 2012-13, we shall raise our funding support for national sports associations to almost $250 million for providing training to athletes and organising sports events. Through the "M" Mark Scheme, we help national sports associations host major international sports events in Hong Kong.
189. On sports infrastructure, we are building our first indoor velodrome in Tseung Kwan O while redeveloping both the Victoria Park and the Kwun Tong Swimming Pools. Preparatory work is underway for the development of a sports complex at Kai Tak. This project involves the construction of a main stadium, a secondary stadium and an indoor sports arena. We are conducting a consultancy study on the project to explore the most suitable construction and financing arrangements. |
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