Information Services Department
The Information Services Department (ISD) serves as the
government's public relations consultant, publisher, advertising
agent and news agency. It provides the link between the
administration and the media and, through the latter, enhances
public understanding of government policies, decisions and
activities.
The department is organised into six divisions - News and
Media Research, Public Relations, Publicity, Overseas Public
Relations, Visits, and Administration. It has a staff of about
560, of whom some 350 are Information Grade officers. The
majority of these officers operate outside ISD Headquarters to
provide information, publicity and public relations services to
policy branches and their departments. A few are posted to
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government offices
overseas.
In 1994, the ISD began to implement an information systems
strategy to improve the quality of its services through the
quicker dissemination of information and more efficient
communication links. The first stage involved the use of the
Government News Information System to, among other
things, issue press releases to news organisations via
computers. The information systems strategy has been fully
implemented and extended to all departmental operations
following the computerisation of the ISD press library in
August 1996.
In June 1997, the ISD introduced a new Digital Photo System.
This allows news organisations to search on-line and
down-load government photographs in digital format around
the clock. During the operation of the Press and Broadcast
Centre for the Handover Ceremony, digital photographs
produced by the system were also placed in a special
Handover Web Site for downloading by the press world wide.
In December 1995, the ISD launched a Government Home
Page (http://www.info.gov.hk) on the Internet through which
essential information on Hong Kong can be accessed. It now
provides a linkage to more than 60 home pages of government
agencies and related organisations. The government
encourages use of the Internet for the dissemination of
government information. In 1997, the ISD established an
Internet Resource Centre to help branches and departments set
up home pages and to consider how the government could
improve the dissemination of information through better use of
the Internet.
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