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RECREATION, SPORTS AND THE ARTS
The councils also encourage the formation of life-guard clubs at their swimming venues. These clubs help to maintain a steady supply of voluntary life-guards to augment the councils' regular life-guard service. At the end of the year, 13 life-guards clubs were operating in the urban areas, and eight in the Regional Council area.
In order to convey the message of safe swimming to a wide spectrum of the public, the Urban Council has launched a series of promotional programmes. These included a Water Safety Slogan Competition which attracted 2 710 entries and a Water Safety Poster Design Competition in which 594 students took part.
Summer Youth Programme
The territory-wide Summer Youth Programme is organised each year for children and young people aged between 6 and 25. Social and recreational programmes as well as community service activities help them to develop their skills, appreciate inter-human relationships, get to know the community in which they live and enhance their sense of responsibility to the community.
In 1991, the Summer Youth Programme was officially launched on June 30, bearing the central theme 'Share the Fun, Serve the Community'. About 11 761 activities were organised and 1.27 million young people took part between July and September. Over $30.5 million, of which $11.8 million was donated by the Jockey Club, went into the programme. The balance was made up by the government, district boards, Urban Council, - Regional Council, private donations and participants' fees. Twenty outstanding volunteers were awarded Summer Youth Programme Scholarships. The awardees attended an 18-day course organised by the Outward Bound School on board the vessel Ji Fung.
Ocean Park
Ocean Park is Asia's largest oceanarium and fun park, located on the south side of Hong Kong Island overlooking the South China Sea.
Nearly 2.5 million people visited Ocean Park, Middle Kingdom and Water World in 1991.
Ocean Park's headland and lowland areas are linked by a cable car system and also, from Tai Shue Wan, by the world's longest covered outdoor escalator.
Attractions on the headland include six 'thrill rides', with one of the longest and fastest roller coasters in the world. There is also the Ocean Theatre, featuring killer whales, dolphins, sea lions and a high diving show, the new Japanese Garden, the Wave Cove with sea lions, seals and penguins and the Atoll Reef, one of the world's largest aquaria. In January 1991, the park opened a $40 million Shark Aquarium, home to more than 50 sharks comprising 20 different species which can be seen from a walk-through viewing tunnel.
Middle Kingdom covers some 5 000 years of Chinese history with temples and shrines, pavilions, pagodas and palaces. There are demonstrations of crafts by skilled artisans and shows featuring acrobatics, kung fu, cultural and lion dances.
In the lowland area, there is a goldfish pagoda housing over 100 species of goldfish, Cine 2000, a greenhouse complex, Butterfly House with some 1 500 butterflies and Children's Adventure World. Also in the lowland is Water World, Asia's first water playpark.
The aviary in Tai Shue Wan is home to more than 2 000 birds representing 150 species, and has a bird theatre, parrot garden and a new flamingo pond.