With the compliments of the P.R.0.
(To be published in full without any editing)
HONG KONG'S DEVELOPMENT AND
THE WELFARE OF ITS PEOPLE
9.1.47
In recent years His Majesty's Government has shown increasingly sympathetic interest in the development of the natural resources of the Colonies and in the improvement of the well-being of their peoples.
The Colonial Development and Welfare Act, 1940, provided for Development Schemes up to the year 1951 and for annual expenditure up to £5,500,000. This earlier Act has now been superseded by the Colonial Development and Welfare Act, 1945, which provides for a total expenditure from United Kingdom Treasury funds of £120,000,000 over the ten-year period ending on 31st March, 1956. This sum may be drawn on at any time for the implementation of approved schemes, subject to a maximum issue in any one year of £17,500,000, of which £1,000,000 may be spent on Research,
Firstly,
The total sum is to be allocated under three headings. £23,500,000 is set aside for Central Schemes, i.e. those services to the Colonial Empire which can best be provided for under central control. These include Research, Higher Education, Training Schemes, Geodetie and Topo- graphical Surveys, Aeronautical, Wireless and Meteorological Services, Nutrition and Forestry Services, etc. Such centrally-controlled projects are of immense value to the general development of the Empire.
Secondly, £85,000,000 has already been allotted to individual Colonial territories, including £1,000,000 to Hong Kong.
Thirdly, a General Reserve of £11,000,000, is held back for such future supplementary allocations either to the Central Fund or to indivi- dual Colonial territories, as may from time to time be approved.
At the end of 1945 the Hong Kong Government, together with the Governments of all Colonial territories concerned, was instructed by the Secretary of State for the Colonies to arrange for the preparation of a comprehensive ten-year Development and Welfare Plan. The principles whiak - should govern the formulation of this Plan were carefully tofined by the Secretary of State and the following extracts from his despatch, which has since been published as Command Paper 6713, are of general interest:
(para. 3 of (3) 1) "This increase in the total sum to be provided and the lengthening of the period of such assistance by a further five years mark an important turning point in the development of Colonial productive resources and the improvement of human well-being. It comes at a time when a gradual easing of the war-time shortages of materials, equipment and skilled technical and scientific personnel may be hoped for. There are great possibilities in the years that lie ahead for raising the standards of health, education, social welfare, and general well-being of Colonial peoples if these expanded services are based upon improved economic efficiency and increased production. The primary requisite still is an improvement of the economic position in the Colonial Dependencies, the utilisation of their natural resources to the greatest extent possible and the widening of opportunity for human enterprise and endeavour.
As a contribution towards improvements in Colonial development and welfare, the present Act provides a substantial sum of money, but it is not intended that this sum should be taken as indicating the total Colonial need for development expenditure in the next ten years. The total cost of development that can be embarked upon may be expected to be considerably greater than £120,000,000, according to the extent to which Colonial Governments can supplement the contemplated grants whether from public funds or with the assistance of private trade and enterprise. The new Act will, I am confi- dent, enable Colonial Governments to draw up plans of development over the ten-year period, and to achieve steady and sustained progress towards the great goal of raising the standards of living and well-being of their people.
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