RECREATION, SPORTS AND THE ARTS
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per head of the urban population. The libraries also subscribed to 1 282 titles of local and overseas newspapers and periodicals.
A total of nine million books and 270 600 audio-cassette tapes were loaned during the year, while 18.5 million books were read in the libraries. The year also saw the registration of 86 000 new members, bringing the total membership to 1914 000.
The three reference libraries at the City Hall, Kowloon Central Library and Arts Library were heavily used, with a total of 77 900 reference enquiries handled by the staff and 837 000 reference books consulted.
Urban Council libraries also housed a number of unique collections for public use. These included the British Standards, the Hok Hoi collection of classical Chinese thread-sewn rare books, the Kotewall collection of old Chinese and English books, the Royal Asiatic Society collection on Hong Kong and China studies, the Oriental Ceramic Society collection, the Royal Institution of Naval Architects and the Institute of Marine Engineers collection, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange collection and the course materials of the Open Learning Institute of Hong Kong. The City Hall Library is the depository library for Hong Kong, United Nations, World Bank, Asian Development Bank, General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and World Food Programme publications.
A competition on creative writing in Chinese was organised to cultivate interest in this area. The winning entries were published for sale to encourage wider participation and provide healthy reading materials. Since the inception of the awards in 1979, 54 titles have -been published.
The second Hong Kong Biennial Awards for Chinese Literature were organised in recognition of the achievements of local writers.
To publicise the high standard of books printed and published locally, a competition on the best produced books in Hong Kong was organised jointly with the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The 20 winning entries were exhibited at the Hong Kong Book Fair in July.
A reading programme for young people was held to arouse interest in reading. Since its launch in 1984, over 90 000 young people have enrolled as members in the programme and have read a total of 1.4 million books.
A wide range of other extension activities and outreach programmes were organised by the libraries. These included book exhibitions, interest clubs, subject talks, children's hours, computer literacy projects and library visits. These attracted 2.9 million people.
Regional Council Libraries
The Regional Council operates 22 public libraries and three mobile libraries serving 36 regular stops. These libraries, with a registered membership of 920 000, had a total stock of 1.8 million books and 101 000 items of audio-visual material.
Public library services were particularly well received in the developing new towns. In 1993, 5.81 million books and audio cassettes were lent for home use. Sha Tin Central Library, the council's first central library and the most heavily patronised library in Hong Kong, registered a record issue of 8 350 items of library materials in a single day on July 16, 1993.
To further strengthen the council's library services, its third central library, in Tsuen Wan, opened in July. The Mui Wo Public Library was also relocated in the new Regional Council Mui Wo complex to better serve local users.