The tragic fire that broke out in the Shek Kip Mei squatter area on Christmas Day in 1953 inspired a wave of development that saw the birth of Hong Kong's public housing programme. Resettlement buildings six, seven or eight storeys high sprung up to provide temporary relief, and, as the programme expanded to provide more and more homes for Hong Kong's citizens, the construction of public housing in the late 1970s even gave an impetus to the spread of the population to the territory's new towns. Today, over three million people live in public rental housing and assisted home ownership flats, with over half the population benefiting from the public housing programme.


Jointly presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and the Hong Kong Housing Authority, this exhibition reviews the development of public housing over the past half a century through the display of historical photos, reconstructions of resettlement buildings and household settings. At the same time, the stories of individual men and women who have lived in different generations of public housing provide a glimpse into the communal lifestyles of the estates and a fascinating insight into this important part of our heritage.


If you would like to know more about public housing in Hong Kong, you are welcome to visit the website of Hong Kong Housing Authority.
www.housingauthority.gov.hk