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LCQ1: District-based poverty alleviation initiatives
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    Following is a question by the Hon Frederick FUNG Kin-kee and a reply by the Financial Secretary, Mr Henry Tang, in the Legislative Council today (November 2):

Question:

     In his Policy Address delivered last month, the Chief Executive said that district-based poverty alleviation initiatives would be strengthened.  In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)  whether it has conducted independent and thorough studies of the poverty problems in various districts to help the authorities understand the causes and state of poverty in these districts; how it will address the poverty problems in various districts, and whether it will set time-bound targets on poverty eradication for various districts;

(b)  how it will pull together people from various strata of the local communities to take part in poverty alleviation initiatives; of the respective roles played by local social welfare agencies, poverty concern groups and district councils, and the current progress of poverty alleviation initiatives in various districts; and

(c)  of the resources available to assist poverty alleviation initiatives in various districts, the amount of funds involved and the specific timing of funding allocation, and whether all the revenue to be generated from the Personalised Vehicle Registration Marks Scheme will be used for district-based poverty alleviation initiatives?

Reply:

Madam President,

     In order to better co-ordinate the work of government departments in alleviating poverty at the district level and to pull together district resources, the Commission on Poverty (CoP) has adopted the district-based approach in alleviating poverty since its establishment early this year.  We have chosen three districts, namely Yuen Long, Sham Shui Po and Kwun Tong as pilot districts where district task forces chaired by the District Officers have been set up and district action plans formulated.

     I would like to emphasize that different districts have their own characteristics and problems; poverty alleviation work should be district-based as local personalities should be in the best position to understand their various needs.  District-based approach in alleviating and preventing poverty is not a one-way approach whereby all the responsibilities are placed on the districts.  In fact, the CoP and various policy bureaux have been making efforts to complement the work of the districts in the past few months.  For instance, the CoP through its Secretariat has been maintaining close liaison with the districts with a view to providing them with assistance where necessary in implementing their action plans and providing them with additional resources and support.  All policy bureaux have also strengthened their services for the districts in the past few months.  We hope that the concerted efforts of the districts, the CoP and policy bureaux will help co-ordinate district-based poverty alleviation initiatives so that the initiatives can complement one another to further enhance their effectiveness.

(I)  Developing indicators to measure the effectiveness

     Madam President, in reply to part (a) of the question, I would like to point out that the Government has put in place a diversified and multi-dimensional approach at the district level to identify the needy and assess the effectiveness of various initiatives. For example:

(i)  The Health, Welfare and Food Bureau and the Education and Manpower Bureau have been using district maternal and child care centres and schools as a platform to identify children and students with special needs in the districts so that early intervention and follow-up services can be provided;

(ii)  The Social Welfare Department has developed a protocol for the district welfare planning together with a set of evidence-based social indicators of district welfare needs to help the District Social Welfare Officers to assess district welfare needs and conduct district planning;

(iii)  Apart from the above screening mechanism, various district offices and government departments will, as in the past, maintain close liaison with district personalities through District Councils, Area Committees and residents' organizations like mutual aid committees and owners' corporations.

     As for poverty prevention and alleviation at the district level, we are not in favour of rigidly setting time-bound targets in combating poverty.  We will fully make use of the existing bases and mechanisms to assess the effectiveness of various initiatives and review the results of the work on poverty prevention and alleviation from time to time.  Moreover, the pilot districts will also compile performance indicators for theiraction plans.

     Poverty is a complicated issue.  In defining poverty and identifying those in genuine need, we can by no means rigidly adopt one fixed figure or line.  The CoP also agrees that it should take a multi-dimensional approach in understanding poverty.  In this connection, the Government Economist is developing a set of indicators to examine and monitor the poverty situation in Hong Kong from a macro perspective to facilitate broad strategy planning.

(II)  The role of various sectors in alleviating poverty

     For district poverty alleviation work to achieve success, the participation and co-ordination of various sectors (including local social welfare agencies, poverty concern groups, District Council members and the business community) is required.  The CoP will continue to coordinate various sectors in preventing and alleviating poverty and encourage co-operation among the Government, the business community and the public so as to establish a closer district network and build up social capital.

     Besides, the task forces on poverty alleviation in the three pilot districts provide a major platform for co-ordinating poverty alleviation work of various government departments in the districts.  Members of the task forces include representatives of the relevant government departments and the district councils.  They have been working closely with the district councils, district organisations and NGOs.

     Although the poverty alleviation task forces in these districts have started work for a few months only, with the concerted efforts of different sectors, good progress has been made.  For example:

(i)  The "Promotion of Harmony & Self-enhancement Programme in Yuen Long" is being held in Yuen Long District from July 2005 to February 2006 with a view to enhancing local residents' understanding of the social welfare and employment support services in Tin Shui Wai;

(ii)  A "Mentorship Scheme" is being implemented to provide mentor services for the youths in Sham Shui Po with a view to widening their social network and helping them develop a positive attitude;

(iii)  In June 2005, a district round-table meeting was held in Kwun Tong with nearly 200 district personalities from various sectors participating in the discussion on the local poverty problem.  Besides, the Working Group on Concerns on Poverty under the Kwun Tong District Council is going to implement a large-scale poverty alleviation programme focusing on women's support service.

(III)  Resource Allocation

     Regarding resource allocation, addressing different district needs and assisting the disadvantaged groups to achieve self-reliance is the long-established policy direction of the Government. Instead of simply disbursing money, poverty alleviation should focus on education and welfare in which the largest amount of resources have been spent by the Government.

     Both the Government and the CoP agree that district-based approach is the right policy direction in poverty alleviation. To further strengthen poverty alleviation work at the district level, respective district task forces chaired by District Officers would work out their own district plans. The Government would also provide additional resources to facilitate their implementation where appropriate. For example, $10 million has been allocated to the Education and Manpower Bureau for opening of school premises to the public in some districts where there is a lack of community facilities. In addition to consolidating existing resources, the Government will use all of the net proceeds generated from the Personalised Vehicle Registration Marks (PVRM) Scheme (with an estimated annual proceeds of no less than $60 million) for poverty alleviation initiatives upon enactment of the bill on PVRM by the Legislative Council.  The CoP will further discuss how to strengthen support to districts by the end of this year.

Ends/Wednesday, November 2, 2005
Issued at HKT 12:36

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