Comprehensive contingency plan to deal with Y2K problems

August 18, 1999

The Government is setting up a Central Co-ordinating Centre to ensure quick responses to Year 2000-induced incidents from relevant organisations and Government departments during the rollover to the new millennium.

Speaking at a seminar on Hong Kong's overall Y2K readiness today (Wednesday), the Secretary for Information Technology and Broadcasting, Mr K C Kwong, said one of the top priorities of the Government was the formulation of a comprehensive contingency plan to minimise the possible adverse impact of the Y2K problem.

He said, "The Central Co-ordinating Centre will work closely with the co-ordinating centres established in 13 essential service sectors, including food supply, transport, financial services, public order, fire and emergency services, environment, aviation, public health, telecommunication, port management, energy supply, immigration and broadcasting."

Mr Kwong pointed out that as at August 15, 1999, 99.9 per cent of Government's mission critical systems were Y2K compliant. For the remaining 0.1 per cent, involving six systems, the concerned Government departments had formulated contingency plans for each of these systems to ensure that services provided to the public would not be disrupted.

He explained that apart from contingency plans for individual systems, Government bureaux/departments had formulated departmental/institutional business continuity plans to cope with possible disruptions to their services which might result from Y2K-induced failures.

Other essential services providers are also formulating similar contingency plans to ensure continuity in the provision of their services.

He said, "In some critical services sectors such as financial services, telecommunications, shipping, health and transport, concerned Government departments and organisations are working together on contingency plans at the sectoral level so as to better co-ordinate emergency responses within the sector."

Mr Kwong said, as an international financial, trading and shipping centre, Hong Kong's progress in Y2K compliance work had remained the focus of international organisations.

He said, "According to a recent study conducted by the Global 2000 Co-ordinating Group, which comprises representatives of some 500 institutions world-wide from the banking, securities and insurance sectors, Hong Kong is one of the four best prepared places amongst 48 economies in the world in terms of overall Y2K readiness.

"The assessment was made having regard to the compliance position of seven critical sectors, namely financial services institutions, clearing and settlement institutions, telecommunications, public transport operators, energy supply, water supply and government in each economy."

Turning to publicity programmes, the Secretary said the Government had intensified the Y2K publicity efforts to prepare the general public for a smooth and orderly transition to the new millennium.

"We have published three Y2K check-lists on the things to note in relation to the Y2K issue in a home environment, in an office/factory setting and in building services installations. So far, over 1.3 million copies of the check-lists have been distributed to the public.

Mr Kwong stressed that the Government would continue to publicise the latest position of the Y2K compliance in various essential services sectors in the coming few months through various means.

The symposium is co-organised by the Information Technology and Broadcasting Bureau and the Hong Kong Productivity Council to publicise the latest Y2K compliance position of essential services in Hong Kong and to introduce their work in contingency planning.

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