Coronavirus: Hong Kong has not done enough to fight the next infection wave, health chief says, pointing to adoption of tracking technology

City must further leverage technology to harness data and prepare for any possible fifth wave of the virus, Sophia Chan says

Call comes as chief secretary prepares to meet mainland Chinese officials and iron out details on fully reopening the border with mainland

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People scan the QR code for the government’s “Leave Home Safe” risk-exposure app to enter Immigration Tower in Wan Chai. Photo: Winson Wong

Published: 11:05pm, 24 Nov 2021Updated: 9:45am, 25 Nov 2021

Hong Kong has not done enough to prepare for a fifth wave of Covid-19, including adopting digital contact-tracing systems to detect and prevent the spread of the pandemic, according to the city’s health minister.

Health secretary Sophia Chan Siu-chee made the assessment at the Asia Summit on Global Health on Wednesday, with authorities gearing up for full border reopening with mainland China.

An official delegation led by Chief Secretary John Lee Ka-chiu is in Shenzhen for a top-level meeting with their mainland counterparts on Thursday. They are expected to iron out details including a launch date for the move, and the circumstances under which the arrangement might be suspended.

There are many, many areas that we need to further digitalise

Health chief Sophia Chan

Officials and experts from both sides of the border had their first meeting on the matter in late September.

A source said Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor had invited top foreign envoys in Hong Kong to Government House, her official residence, on Tuesday night for a briefing on the border reopening with the mainland.

The government has signalled it will enforce wider use of technology to meet Beijing’s requirement for a full border reopening.

Earlier this week, it announced that check-ins via the “Leave Home Safe” contact-tracing app would be mandatory in all restaurants and other leisure venues, such as cinemas and fitness centres, starting from December 9.

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