CONSTITUTION AND ADMINISTRATION
14
Each district has a district management committee, chaired by the district officer, comprising representatives of departments providing essential services in the district. It serves as a forum for inter-departmental consultation on district matters and co- ordinates the provision of public services and facilities to ensure that district needs are met promptly.
The district management committee works closely with the district board and, as far as possible, follows the advice given by the board. To improve communication between the district management committee and the district board, district board chairmen attend district management committee meetings as observers.
Area committees and mutual aid committees were set up in districts in the early 1970s throughout the territory, in support of the Keep Hong Kong Clean Campaign and Fight Violent Crime Campaign. A review of the area committees brought changes in November 1994 relating to their number, composition, terms of reference and geographical coverage. These were introduced to streamline their operations. Area committees encourage public participation in district affairs, help organise community activities and government campaigns, and advise on issues of a localised
nature.
Mutual aid committees are building-based resident organisations, established to improve the security, cleanliness and general management of multi-storey buildings. More than 70 area committees and 4 000 mutual aid committees provide an extensive and effective network of communication between the government and the people at = the grassroots level.
Attached to the district offices are 19 public enquiry service centres, which provide a wide range of free services to members of the public, including answering general enquiries on government services; distributing government forms and information materials; administering oaths and declarations for private use; and referring cases under the meet-the-public scheme, the free Legal Advice Scheme and Rent Officer Scheme. Under the latter scheme, rent officers from the Rating and Valuation Department are available at 15 public enquiry service centres on specified days of the week to advise on tenancy matters and the statutory rights and obligations of landlords and tenants. The public enquiry service centres and central telephone enquiry centre handled 1.64 million enquiries and 1.07 million clients in 1995.
Links Between the Representative Institutions
The Urban Council and the Regional Council, which cover much the same fields in their respective areas, hold liaison meetings and institute joint ventures. The Urban Council and the Regional Council are closely linked to the district boards. Each district board in the urban area has a representative member on the Urban Council. A similar arrangement exists between the Regional Council and the district boards. in the New Territories. In addition, members of the New Territories district boards also sit on the district committees under the Regional Council. Through these channels, the district boards are consulted on a wide range of matters affecting their
areas.
New Territories district boards maintain a close relationship with the Heung Yee Kuk, reserving seats for Rural Committee chairmen, who are also ex officio members of the Kuk's executive committee. The Regional Council also has a formal link with the Heung Yee Kuk, through the ex officio membership of the Kuk's chairman and