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HKCSS Releases Inaugural Data on Caring Business Practices in Hong Kong
3,500 Companies Recognized; Support for Working Caregivers Emerges as New Benchmark for Friendly Workplaces
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 22 January 2026 – 22 January 2026 – The Hong Kong Council of Social Service (HKCSS) held the 2024/25 Caring Company Scheme Recognition Ceremony today at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Mr. Chris SUN Yuk-han, JP, Secretary for Labour and Welfare of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, attended as the Guest of Honour. This year, a total of 3,500 caring companies and organisations were recognised.
From left:Hon Grace CHAN Man-yee, Chief Executive Of HKCSS
Mr. CHAN Tsz Ming, Director, Analysts at Level 1, Department of Social Affairs, Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR
Mr. Chris SUN, JP, Secretary for Labour and Welfare
Revd Canon Hon Peter Douglas KOON Ho Ming, SBS, JP, Chairperson of HKCSS
Mr. CHAN Charnwut, Bernard, GBM, GBS, JP, Vice-chairperson of HKCSS
Ms. CHAK Tung Ching, Yvonne, Vice-chairperson of HKCSS
For the first time, HKCSS released the major findings from the Caring Business Achievements Overview, providing an in-depth look at corporate trends in addressing social issues such as population ageing, workforce challenges, and climate change across four key pillars: Partnership, Social, Economic, and Environmental Sustainability.
Mr. Chris SUN Yuk-han, JP, Secretary for Labour and Welfare of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, congratulated the businesses and organizations recognized by the Caring Company Scheme. He emphasized that building a compassionate society requires collaboration with the business community, which plays a vital role alongside government and non-governmental efforts. By prioritizing employee welfare, employers not only uplift families but also drive growth, attract talent, and foster mutual benefits. Mr. SUN called upon the business sector to engage more proactively in this initiative, fostering a collective commitment to building a more caring society for all.

24 Years of Deep-Rooted Partnership: 28% of Collaborations Last 10 Years or More
The Caring Company Scheme has been running for 24 years. The Revd Canon the Hon. Peter Douglas KOON, SBS, JP, Chairman of HKCSS, stated in his speech: “The Scheme underwent a significant revamp recently to localise international sustainability frameworks. Through our inaugural data analysis, we can observe the business sector’s overall performance in tackling challenges like population ageing and climate change. We hope these trends will guide companies to transform a culture of care into concrete business decisions.”
Data indicates that business-social partnerships have built a solid foundation. Over 70% of companies have maintained partnerships with community partners for three years or more, while 28% have sustained collaborations for over a decade, reflecting a commitment to long-term stability in cross-sectoral collaboration.

New Frontier in the Workplace: Support for Working Caregivers Emerges as a Key Focus
Corporate performance in supporting caregivers has become a focal point. Data reveals that over 80% of companiess have popularised flexible work arrangements, and 104 companies received special “Caregiver-Friendly” commendations for their outstanding support measures this year.
Hon Grace CHAN Man-yee, Chief Executive of HKCSS, observed several innovative cases: “Some companies have implemented eight weeks of fully paid adoption leave, five days of leave for only-child caregivers, and even ‘Grandchild Leave’. Others provide patient companion service. Supporting caregivers does not necessarily require massive financial investment; as long as it starts from the employees’ needs, the possibilities for caring business are endless.”
Five Key Recommendations: From “Ad Hoc Actions” to “Policy Integration”
While companies excel in charitable donations and active participation, there is room for improvement in environmental data tracking (currently at approximately 30%) and workplace diversity. Consequently, HKCSS proposes five key recommendations:
- Deepen Caring Standards: Treat the Caring Company Scheme indicators as operational benchmarks to establish a systematic socially responsible business model.
- Promote Professional Sharing and Responsible Procurement: Encourage management to join NGO boards as volunteers to provide professional support and integrate NGO products into corporate procurement supply chains.
- Build Diverse and Inclusive Workplaces: Actively employ disadvantaged groups to tap into new talent pools and implement flexible work to support working caregivers.
- Sustain Investment in Talent Development: Recognize talent as a driver of economic growth, enhance staff training, and strengthen mental health support.
- Initiate Data-Driven Management: We recommend that companies immediately start tracking data related to sustainability performance to ensure that social initiatives are measurable and sustainable.
In 2024/25, the Caring Company Scheme received over 4,300 applications. Ultimately, 3,500 companies and organisations were recognised the Caring Company and Caring Organisation logos, comprising large corporations (42%), SMEs (51%), and organisations (7%). HKCSS emphasised that the data release aims to establish a long-term mechanism to guide the business sector in finding room for improvement and addressing future social challenges through collaboration.
Hashtag: #TheHongKongCouncilofSocialService #HKCSS #theCaringCompanyScheme #Caregiver-Friendly
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4,680 young Chinese volunteers called “Little Deer” ready for Asian Beach Games
Recruited from 12 universities, including Hainan University and Hainan Normal University, as well as other local organizations, the volunteers share the common nickname “Little Deer.” The name is derived from Sanya’s nickname, “Deer City,” and is meant to reflect the volunteers’ lively, warm, and friendly spirit.
“See ya in Sanya” is both the slogan of the Asian Beach Games and the guiding principle for its volunteers. Liang Zihan, a student from Hainan Tropical Ocean University, said: “Since the launch of the volunteer recruitment drive, whether it is learning about the Games, mastering multilingual communication, or taking part in scenario-based drills and emergency exercises, I have given it my all. I hope to convey Sanya’s warmth, openness, and inclusiveness to every friend who comes from afar.”
Alongside local students, the volunteer team also includes many young people from across China brought together by the Games. Wu Yujia, a sophomore at the Hospitality Institute of Sanya, is one of them. “I want to show a warm, caring, and energetic Sanya,” she said. When asked about her future plans, she did not hesitate: “I want to stay in Sanya.” In her eyes, the city’s pleasant climate and beautiful scenery have deepened her affection for it and strengthened her commitment to volunteering.
The 6th Asian Beach Games will be held in Sanya, Hainan, from April 22 to 30, 2026. Delegations from all 45 member countries and regions of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) will take part in what is the largest and most influential beach sports event in Asia. As the first major international sporting event to be held in Hainan after the independent customs operations of the Hainan Free Trade Port, the Games are not only a celebration of Asian sport but also an important opportunity for Hainan to present an open and welcoming face to the world.
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SERES’ Clifford Kang Highlights AI-Enabled Smart Mobility at the 2026 World Internet Conference Asia-Pacific Summit
The summit, hosted by the World Internet Conference and organised by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, brought together global industry leaders to explore developments in digital and intelligent transformation.
Against this backdrop, Kang noted that artificial intelligence is accelerating a fundamental shift across industries, with mobility among the most significantly transformed sectors. AI is moving from merely functional to truly frictionless, becoming deeply embedded in every part of our lives and emerging as an inclusive force that enhances mobility, living and consumption experiences.
As this transformation accelerates, SERES continues to embed intelligence across its full value chain, from product development to manufacturing and user services, using continuous innovation to enhance user experience and strengthen its long-term competitiveness as a technology-driven new energy vehicle company.
A key milestone of SERES came in 2021, when SERES entered a cross-industry partnership with Huawei to launch the AITO brand, its premium new energy vehicle brand. At the time, the industry was facing a clear disconnect, where intelligent cars were not luxurious, while luxury cars were not intelligent. In response, AITO introduced the brand philosophy of “Intelligence Redefining Luxury”, positioning intelligence as the foundation of its premium mobility experience. The brand name itself, derived from “adding intelligence to auto”, reflects this core DNA.
Today, that strategy has translated into scale and adoption. AITO has built a user base of more than 880,000 active users of its smart driving assistance system, with total journeys surpassing 6.6 billion kilometres.
Clifford Kang further emphasised that a great product alone is not enough, and that company need to focus on the entire lifecycle user experience. Guided by this principle, SERES has extended intelligent technologies at scale across both manufacturing and customer service to improve every touchpoint.
In manufacturing, the SERES Super Factory, operates with more than 5,000 robots, enabling 100% automation of critical processes. AI vision inspection technology ensures strict quality control of key components, ensuring high quality standards across production.
On the customer service end, SERES has built a 24/7 cloud-based safety service system powered by AI and big data, enabling a shift from reactive support to intelligent predictive service. In 2025 alone, the system delivered approximately 250,000 proactive alerts to customers. One notable example came in July last year, when AITO M9 completed the industry’s first satellite-enabled rescue operation in a remote region of China, highlighting both the practical value and human warmth of intelligent connected technologies in real-world scenarios.
Looking ahead, Clifford Kang stated that new energy vehicles are evolving into the mobile intelligent space, requiring further robust investment in research and development. In 2025 alone, SERES invested RMB 12.5 billion in R&D, representing a 77% year-on-year increase. This investment has enabled the company to develop a suite of core technologies, including the SERES MF Platform, Super Range Extender and Intelligent Safety systems. These innovations are continuously applied across SERES’ products to enhance performance and deliver better mobility experiences for users.
“Bringing eruptive technology from the laboratory to the road requires more than one company’s efforts”, Kang said. “Open collaboration is the most efficient path forward. SERES has always embraced openness and partnership. We want to work with industry partners around the world to advance the mobility sector together. Let’s build up the future where technology has the vision to lead, the precision to excel, and the warmth to care.”
Hashtag: #SERESGroup
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About Seres Group
Seres Group is one of China’s leading luxury new energy vehicle companies. Its premium brand AITO has surpassed one million cumulative users. In 2025 AITO became the best-selling Chinese luxury car brand in the domestic market. With strong capabilities in areas such as intelligent driving, SERES is bringing its vision of “Intelligence Redefining Luxury” to global markets and delivering a smarter mobility experience to more users around the world.
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Taicang Day in Munich: Celebrating 18 Years of Sino-German Industrial Innovation
The event featured a distinguished lineup of speakers who shared their insights on deepening cooperation. Gudrun Weidmann, Director for Internationalization at the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs; Zhai Qian, Minister Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Germany; Chen Xiaodong, Deputy Director of the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Commerce; Dr. Christian Scharpf, Deputy Mayor of Munich and Head of the Department of Labor and Economic Affairs, and Michaela Schenk, Chair of the Foreign Trade Committee of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry for Munich and Upper Bavaria, delivered opening remarks. The proceedings were moderated by Stefan Geiger, Chairman of the China-Western Bavaria Business and Cultural Association.

Chen Gao, Secretary of the CPC Taicang Municipal Committee, delivered a keynote address titled “Green, Innovation, and Integration: Establishing a Model for Sino-German Cooperation.” In his speech, Chen drew a poetic parallel between Munich and Taicang’s home region of Suzhou, describing both as paragons of the perfect fusion between tradition and modernity where cutting-edge technology and modern industry coexist harmoniously with rich cultural heritage.
Reflecting on 33 years of deep engagement with Germany, Chen emphasized that Taicang’s bilateral cooperation has reached a historic turning point, transitioning from merely attracting foreign capital to fostering two-way investment, and from industrial supply-chain support to the co-creation of a complete industrial ecosystem. The Secretary highlighted three flagship Taicang projects recently included in the official achievement list of the high-level Sino-German summit—the Schaeffler Humanoid Robot Digital Factory, the Sino-German Taicang Zero-Carbon Park, and the Taicang Rhine-Neckar Innovation Center. These milestones vividly demonstrate Taicang’s momentum in pivoting toward green transformation, collaborative innovation, and deep bilateral integration. Taicang’s strategy remains built on the philosophy of long-termism, with Chen reaffirming the city’s dedication to optimizing a market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized business environment while reinforcing its brand identity as a “home away from home” for German community.
Following these addresses, the event yielded several milestone agreements aimed at facilitating practical cooperation, including the official inauguration of the VDE China representative office in Taicang and the signing of a new batch of German scientific innovation projects. To further support the internationalization of local firms, the Taicang Enterprise Overseas Service Center was officially unveiled, alongside a dedicated matchmaking session for Chinese companies expanding into global markets. Furthermore, State Grid Taicang Power Supply Company presented its latest initiatives in Green Compliance and Environmental Sustainability, a presentation that received widespread acclaim for aligning industrial power solutions with international ESG standards.
Taicang’s strategic appeal is rooted in its premier location adjacent to Shanghai and its world-class infrastructure. Situated within a 30-minute commuting radius of central Shanghai, the city offers rapid access to Hongqiao Airport in 20 minutes and Pudong International Airport in just over an hour. Its maritime gateway, the Port of Taicang, features a 12.5-meter deep-water channel and ranks 8th in China and 20th globally, with an annual throughput exceeding 10 million TEUs. This logistics network supports a robust industrial ecosystem of over 5,000 enterprises, where 70% of vehicle components can be sourced locally.
Widely recognized as the “Home of German Enterprises” in China, Taicang now hosts over 560 German firms, including 60 “hidden champion” companies. This specialized cluster represents more than 10% of all German manufacturing enterprises in China. The city’s collaborative success is further evidenced by projects mentioned above in Chen Gao’s speech such as the Schaeffler Humanoid Robot Digital Factory and the Sino-German Taicang Zero-Carbon Park, and the Taicang Rhine-Neckar Innovation Center, all of which were included in the official achievement list of the German Chancellor’s visit to China.
To support its growing international community, Taicang has developed a sophisticated service ecosystem. The city’s Foreigner Service Center integrates 73 specialized services, supported by the “Hi Taicang” card which provides foreign residents with enhanced convenience in healthcare, education, and transportation. Complemented by cultural landmarks like the Rothenburg-themed street and authentic German bakeries, Taicang has created an environment where international partners can truly root themselves for long-term success.
Hashtag: #TIZ
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