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To encourage and facilitate the establishment of more social enterprises (SEs) and strengthen the support for SEs, the Home Affairs Department (HAD) will implement a series of new measures under the Enhancing Self-Reliance Through District Partnership Programme (ESR Programme) from the first quarter of 2011.
Such measures include the expansion of the eligibility criteria for applying to the ESR Programme. Apart from organisations that have registered under Section 88 of the Inland Revenue Ordinance (Cap. 112), HAD will accept, on a trial basis, applications from non-profit-making organisations which have not registered under Section 88 of Cap. 112, provided that these organisations can provide, amongst others, satisfactory documentary proof of their non-profit making status, track record and audited annual reports of at least two years of their operation.
Apart from expanding eligibility, the maximum funding period for grantees will be extended from two years to three years, while the funding ceiling of $3 million per project will remain unchanged.
To strengthen the support for grantees, grantees with good business performance that plan to expand their business may apply for a one-off incentive grant to be disbursed on a matching basis. Grantees with business hardship may apply for a one-off supplementary grant to subsidise their operating expenses. Such a supplementary grant would be granted on an exceptional basis and, in any case, would not exceed 20% of the original seed grant already approved and the funding ceiling of $3 million per project would remain unchanged.
To encourage the establishment of SE businesses which may tie in well with prevailing government policies or the needs of the community, a list of such business fields will be promulgated on the ESR Programme webpage for general reference by prospective applicants.
These new measures are the results of the review to the ESR Programme conducted in 2010.
Details of the ESR Programme are available on the webpage: www.had.gov.hk/esr .
Ends/Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Issued at HKT 14:30
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