1954-1955 — Page 5

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INTRODUCTION

Hong Kong to-day is probably one of the most densely populated places in the world. The total area of the Colony including the New Territories is about 391 square miles and the estimated population about two and a half million, that is almost 6,400 persons to the square mile or about 10 persons to the acre. Of this population it is estimated that about 2,000,000 people live in the twin cities of Victoria and Kowloon, where densities of over 2,000 persons to the acre are common.

2. This population has mainly been built up during the last two decades. The last census in the Colony was held in 1931 and showed a total population of 849,000. By 1941 this had risen to an estimated 1,600,000. At the liberation of the Colony in 1945 there were less than 600,000 persons but by 1947 the total had again increased to 1,600,000 and thereafter it rose steadily. This increase was mainly the result of large scale immigration from China but it has been considerably aided by a rapidly rising birth rate within the Colony. In 1954 the excess of births over deaths was over 1,000 a week; it is thought that in the next decade this excess might well reach 80,000 a year.

3.

The accommodation available in the Colony has not been sufficient for such an increase, and while there has been considerable progress in the construction of new buildings there is still a wide shortage of accommodation.

4. The normal unit of housing in the Colony is the tene- ment block. This generally has a narrow frontage and conse- quently long narrow rooms. These old tenements are obsolete in design; many of them lack the most elementary sanitary facilities; and almost all are over-crowded. It is provided by law that the minimum living space should be 35 sq. ft. for each adult, and the average tenement floor has a maximum legal accommodation for 14 adults. It is estimated that the general

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