HONG KONG, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- The Legislative Council of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) has approved funding of 150 million HK dollars (19.28 million U.S. dollars) to organize Olympic-related cultural, sports, community, celebration and promotional activities, a top financial official said here Wednesday. "As a cosmopolitan city, apart from increasing investment in education, Hong Kong must strive to enhance the quality of culture, arts and sports in the community," said John Tsang, financial secretary of the HKSAR government, when delivering his first budget speech to the Legislative Council. The Policy Address has announced that the Yau Ma Tei Theater in Kowloon will be converted into a Cantonese opera center to promote and preserve this local art, Tsang said. The HKSAR government has earmarked about 120 million HK dollars (15.42 million U.S. dollars) for this project. Tsang said the Home Affairs Bureau will seek Legislative Council's approval for a 21.6 billion HK dollars (2.78 billion U.S. dollars) upfront endowment for the West Kowloon Cultural District development. The recreational facilities managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department will be open for public use free of charge from July to September this year, though receipts from these facilities will decrease by about 100 million HK dollars (12.85 million U.S. dollars), Tsang said.
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