The launch of the MPF System would not have been successful …€¦ · DJs helped to promote MPF. trade associations and worker groups, the MPFA had been able to obtain timely feedback

The large-scale territory-wide Public Education and

Publicity Campaign launched since January 2000

penetrated all sectors and levels of the community.

It successfully raised public awareness of the imminent

implementation of the MPF System, addressed

adverse comments, enhanced public acceptance and

ultimately encouraged enrolment in MPF schemes.

The launch of the MPFSystem would not have beensuccessful unless there wasadequate communicationwith the public, with memberssufficiently informed andrendering their support.

MPFA ANNUAL REPORT 00/0156

The MPFA continuedto reach out to thewhole community ofHong Kong in orderto raise their awarenessand rally their supportfor the MPF System.

P U B L I C E D U C AT I O N A N D P U B L I C I T Y

The mass public was informed,

through extensive media campaigns,

of the benefits the MPF System

would bring to individuals and the

community at large. They were also

reminded of the key dates and

milestones, so as to get prepared for

the implementation.

To ensure a smooth launch,

participating parties needed a good

grasp of the technical and operational

aspects of the System. This included

questions on how to select a scheme,

OBJECTIVES

With the implementation of the MPF

System on 1 December 2000, about

two million Hong Kong people have

enrolled in MPF schemes. For many,

this is the first time that they have

ever joined a retirement protection

plan. The launch of the MPF System

would not have been successful

unless there was adequate

communication with the public, with

members sufficiently informed and

rendering their support. The key

public education and publicity

objectives were therefore to raise

public awareness and rally general

support for the System.

CAMPAIGN STRATEGY

Publicity activities were conducted on

two levels, aiming at the mass public

on the one hand and targeted groups

on the other. The messages and

activities, nevertheless, supplemented

and complemented each other.


prepare and submit information to

the trustees, as well as how to

calculate and make contributions.

As employers, employees and

self-employed persons were required

to attend to different aspects of

scheme operation, messages

were specifically tailored to cater to

their specific information needs.

These messages were disseminated

through trade associations, employer

groups, labour unions and groups

at the district level to their members

and constituents.

MPF CAMPAIGN

COORDINATING COMMITTEE

The promotion of the MPF System

was a major Government publicity

programme for the year 2000-2001.

The MPF Campaign Coordinating

Committee, chaired by the Secretary

for Financial Services, comprised

representatives from the Labour

Department, Information Services

Department, Housing Department,

(Left) Acting

Financial Secretary

Mr Stephen Ip,

MPFA Chairman

Hon Charles Lee

and (right) DJs

at the MPFA

Super Expo.

Legislative

Councillor Hon

Tommy Cheung

visited restaurants

in Shamshuipo

to pass on the MPF

message.

Commissioner

for Labour

Mrs Pamela Tan

officiated at a

Construction Site

Show.

Home Affairs Department and Radio

Television Hong Kong. Committee

members provided valuable input

and assistance to facilitate

the implementation of various

publicity campaigns.

UNDERSTANDING

PUBLIC NEEDS

Understanding the public’s need for

information in order to promptly

address their MPF concerns was a

major success factor for a smooth

launch. Through close liaison and

interaction with various local bodies,


Mr Choi Chun-wa,

Vice-chairman

of Hong Kong

Construction

Industry

Employees

General Union,

distributed MPF

information to

workers.

DJs helped to

promote MPF.

trade associations and worker

groups, the MPFA had been able to

obtain timely feedback and keep

itself abreast of the information needs

of the public.

MAJOR ACTIVITIES OF THE

PUBLIC EDUCATION AND

PUBLICITY CAMPAIGN

MAJOR CAMPAIGNS

• Awareness Campaign – to promote

the awareness of the MPF

System and to educate the public

on their MPF rights.

• Operation-All-Shops – over

50 000 shops were visited by MPFA

ambassadors in this territory-wide

campaign in the summer.

Promotional materials on MPF

were distributed to employers

and employees.

• Celebrities Endorsement

Campaign – prominent leaders

and well-known figures of the

community were invited to proclaim

Over 50 000 shops

were visited

by MPFA

ambassadors in the

“Operation-All-

Shops” Campaign.


and employees in the two industries

to join the Industry Schemes.

• MPF Exemption Campaign –

to encourage employers who

operate ORSO schemes to seek

MPF-exemption status.

ADVERTISING

The public’s attention was drawn

to the milestones along the

implementation process, the key

dates to observe and important

things to note. TV commercials

featuring animated cartoon

P U B L I C E D U C A T I O N A N D P U B L I C I T Y

MPF show on

television.

Video wall

advertisment at

Times Square.

their support for the MPF System.

This served to increase public

awareness and muster general

support for the System.

• Industry Scheme Campaigns –

prominent employers and union

leaders in the catering and

construction industries were invited

to help organize activities in

promoting the schemes. They also

visited eateries and construction

sites to encourage employers

* (Left to right) Mr Tse Lai-leung, President of Hong Kong Construction Association Ltd; Mr Chan Kay-cheung, ISC Member; Hon Lau Chin-sek,

Legislative Councillor; Mr Donald Tsang, Financial Secretary; Mr Lee Kai-ming, MPFA Director; Mr Poon Siu-ping, MPFSAC Member;

Mr Chan Wai-lun, ISC Member; Mr Wu Chor-nam, Chairman of Central & Western District Council; and Mr Rafael Hui, Managing Director.

Mega size billboard

at Jordan

waterfront (right)

and its launch

ceremony* (left)

characters were used to urge

employers and self-employed

persons to join the schemes early

to avoid a last-minute rush.

Apart from engaging TV, radio airtime

and printed advertisement, other

tools for raising public awareness

included large outdoor banners such

as the mega display sign put up

at Jordan facing the harbour. Its huge

Chinese characters “ ”

(MPF for the Future) stand out


sharply against the waterfront,

especially when lit in the evenings.

Similarly, large billboards and

banners carrying the theme

“The Fruit is Yours” (�� !"#$)

were placed throughout Hong Kong,

projecting the image of the

benefits that can be reaped on

retirement. The theme was also

carried on MTR posters.

MEDIA RELATIONS

During the year, 67 media interviews

were arranged. A total of 82 press

releases were issued.

PUBLICITY LITERATURE

Following the highly popular

“All-in-one” guidebook, a series of

pocket-size booklets were published

during the year. There was a total of

11 booklets published (nine in

Chinese and two in English) on topics

such as the main features of the

MPF System, Relevant Income,

Contribution Period, Choosing MPF

Investment Funds, and features

of the different types of funds.

These handy, informative booklets

were widely distributed through

District Offices, trade unions and

chambers of commerce.

Mr Lee Wing-sang,

Chairman of Motor

Transport Workers

General Union,

helped distributing

MPF information to

mini-bus drivers.



The interactive and

user-friendly MPFA

website is a popular

source for MPF

information seekers.

SEMINARS AND WORKSHOPS

FOR INTERMEDIARIES

The MPFA was fully aware of the

pivotal role that MPF intermediaries

played towards the smooth

implementation of the System. MPF

intermediaries are the main interface

between trustees and scheme

members. Their knowledge of the

MPF System and the quality of their

after-sale services would have a

direct impact on the smooth operation

of MPF schemes.

It was important that intermediaries

were equipped with MPF-related

knowledge and expertise. Scores of

seminars and workshops were

organized at different stages of

the publicity campaign to update

them with the latest information and

to answer their queries.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH

Reaching out to the community was

an important part of the MPFA’s

public education initiative. The aim of

the outreach activities was

to establish face-to-face contact, to

provide answers to questions and to

collect feedback. A designated team

travelled throughout the entire SAR to

brief area committees, talk to workers

and attend seminars organized by

various local and workers’ bodies.


The MPFA also joined hands with

employer groups, labour unions and

district bodies to further promulgate

MPF information to employers,

employees, district representatives

and human resources professionals

in discussions, forums and seminars.

There was a total of 986 of these

outreach activities during the year,

attracting about 59 900 attendees.

WORKING TOGETHER WITH

SMALL AND MEDIUM

ENTERPRISES

For the convenience of small and

medium enterprises (SMEs),

MPF SME Resource Centres have

been set up at the MPFA's premises

and the Trade and Industry

Department's SME Information

Centre in Mong Kok to provide

one-stop MPF information service.

The two centres are connected to

the MPFA through direct phone

lines so that SME enquiries can be

answered instantly.

In addition, the MPFA held

12 seminars for SMEs in conjunction

with the Hong Kong Productivity

Council's SME Centre, various

media and SME organizations.

Roadshows held at MTR stations

throughout the year also provided

handy information for SMEs to

help them prepare for the full

implementation in December 2000.

In a direct-mailing campaign in

August 2000, information-rich,

user-friendly booklets and leaflets on

MPF-related issues were distributed

to SMEs throughout Hong Kong.

MPFA WEBSITE

The MPFA website continued to

be a popular source for information

seekers. It underwent an enhancement

and facelift to become more interactive

and user-friendly. Over 400 000

visitors had frequented the site.

The lists of major publicity activities,

campaign media used and

booklets distributed are set out at

Appendices IX to XI.

THE WAY FORWARD

For the year under report, the thrust

of the communication campaign was

to address the questions and

concerns of “what”, “why” and “when”.

The launch of the MPF System

had brought the public education

and publicity campaign into another

stage, which was to address

the question of “how” the MPF

System and the MPFA would

operate to the benefit of members

and the community.

In the coming year, the MPFA will

seek to further propagate

user-friendly MPF-related knowledge,

with an emphasis on investment

education, to the public at large and

MPF scheme members in particular.

Celebrities proclaimed their

support for MPF in a series of

television commercials.

Hon CharlesLee

Hon ChanYuen-han



Hon LauChin-sek

Mr AlbertCheng

Hon HenryTang

Ms DodoCheng

Mr YeungKwun-yat

Mr WongTsz-wah

Hon ChristineLoh

Dr LeeKa-yan

Mr ChanWing-luk

Documents

The launch of the MPF System would not have been successful …€¦ · DJs helped to promote MPF. trade associations and worker groups, the MPFA had been able to obtain timely feedback