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Following is a question by the Hon Cyd Ho and a written reply by the Secretary for Health and Welfare, Dr E K Yeoh, in the Legislative Council today (February 7):
Question :
It has been reported that the funding obtained by some organizations engaged in the prevention of AIDS from the Council for the AIDS Trust Fund ("AIDS Council") this year was substantially reduced, compared to that obtained last year. As a result, the services provided by such organizations have been seriously affected. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the respective numbers of organizations which applied to the AIDS Council for funding and whose applications were approved in each of the past five financial years, together with detailed information about the organizations subsidized under the three categories of funding application, namely "ex-gratia payments", "medical and support services" and "publicity and public education", including the name of each organization and the amount of funds obtained;
(b) of the details of the guidelines and criteria adopted by the AIDS Council for vetting and approving funding applications;
(c) of the mechanism and indicators currently adopted by the AIDS Council for assessing the effectiveness of the activities of the organizations which receive its funding support, and deciding whether funding should continue to be provided for these activities; whether it has taken into account the continuity of the services concerned in making such decisions;
(d) where the amount of funds granted by the AIDS Council to an organization in a certain year is less than that in the previous year, whether
(i) it has explained to the organization why the funding has been cut down;
(ii) it has assessed if the cut would have any impact on the services provided by the organization; if the assessment result is in the affirmative, of the measures adopted to mitigate the impact; if no assessment has been made, of the reasons for that; and
(iii) a mechanism is in place for such organizations to lodge appeals; and
(e) whether the AIDS Council has explained to the organizations concerned the reasons for the rejection of their applications; if not, of the reasons for that; and whether a mechanism is in place for these organizations to lodge appeals?
Reply :
Madam President,
(a) The numbers of organizations which applied to the Council for the AIDS Trust Fund (the Council) for funding and those whose applications were approved during the past five financial years are as follows -
95-96 96-97 97-98 98-99 99-00
No. Of
applicant Organizations 28 25 23 29 26
No. Of
successful
Organizations 20 23 18 21 24The names of organizations whose applications were successful and the amounts of funds granted under the categories of "medical and support services" and "publicity and public education" are set out at Annex (1), (2), (3), (4), (5) {in XLS format}. "Ex-gratia payments" were disbursed to persons infected by HIV through the transfusion of blood products. For the protection of privacy, the names of the recipients cannot be disclosed. So far 57 persons have received ex-gratia payments totalling $33 million.
(b) The Council considers each application on its own merits, i.e. whether or not it fulfils the objectives of the Fund. The proposed project should have a clearly defined scope and is self-contained, and the application should include a detailed implementation plan and ready cost estimate. For medical and support services projects, they should be able to bring direct benefits to HIV/AIDS patients and their families in a significant way. Services proposed by the projects should not duplicate those normally provided by the Hospital Authority and Department of Health. For publicity and public education projects, they should be able to enhance public understanding of AIDS, foster acceptance of people with HIV/AIDS or promote prevention of the disease. In assessing the applications, the Council also takes into consideration the track record of the applicants in completing similar projects.
The Council has published a pamphlet outlining the above funding criteria. Copies of the pamphlet are distributed together with the application forms to applicants. The information is also available on the website of the Council.
(c) Successful applicants are required to submit a detailed written report on the project and their evaluation of the extent to which the original objectives of the project have been achieved, within one month of the project's completion. They are also required to submit a detailed statement of income and expenditure (supported by certified receipts and invoices) of the project and to return to the Fund any unspent balance of the grant. For multi-year projects, applicants are required to report to the Council the progress of their projects at the end of the first year and second year of implementation, as appropriate. The Council will examine the report to assess whether the stated objectives of the project are met. Members of the Council and its two Sub-Committees may attend events sponsored by the Fund to ascertain their effectiveness. The grant is made on a one-off project basis and it does not commit the Fund to recurrent funding to the applicant.
(d) As the Fund provides grants to applicants on a project basis, unlike the subvention system, it does not monitor the level of funding granted to a particular organisation from year to year. Instead, the Council decides on the amount of grant for each application on the basis of the work envisaged in the application. For multi-year projects, approval in principle for funding support for the entire duration of the project is given at the outset. Funding for the second and subsequent years will be released upon receipt of satisfactory progress reports for the preceding year. For single-year projects, funds are provided for one year only. If an applicant subsequently submits a second application of a similar nature, the Council will consider the application having regard to the objectives of the Fund and, if the application is supported, decide on the amount of grant according to the complexity of the project. The amount of grant for the second submission may vary because of changes in project scope, such as change to the number of clients served. There may also be efficiency gains if the same project is conducted for the second time. While the decision of the Council is final, the Council is prepared to reconsider an application if the applicant submits fresh information and justification.
(e) Applicants are welcome to discuss their applications with the Council Secretariat at any time. When an application is rejected by the Council, the Secretariat informs the applicant of the Council's decision in writing. Where required or if asked, the Secretariat briefs the applicant verbally of the reasons for rejection. While the decision of the Council is final, applicants can revise and re-submit their applications, taking into account the views expressed by the Council in considering the original application.
End/Wednesday, February 7, 2001
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