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Beat Drugs Fund invites applications

Interested organisations and individuals are being invited to apply for grants under the $350 million Beat Drugs Fund. The deadline for applications is June 1.

A government spokesman said today (Tuesday): "The Beat Drugs Fund is established to provide funding support to worthwhile projects which can help reduce the drug abuse problem.

"It is among the proposals put forward by participants at the Governor's Summit Meeting on Drugs in March last year.

"The actual amount of funds to be allocated each year depends on the level of income generated from the Fund."

The ambit of the fund includes the furtherance of drug abuse preventive education and publicity, research, training, law enforcement, treatment and rehabilitation.

Projects to be funded should be non profit-making. They may be of a capital or

short-term recurrent nature.

The fund is administered by the Beat Drugs Fund Association, incorporated under the Companies Ordinance, on the advice of the Action Committee Against Narcotics. Narcotics Division of the Security Branch provides the secretariat support for the administration and management of the Fund.

In processing the applications, due consideration will be given to:

the benefit that it will bring to combat the drug problem;

the need for the proposed project;

the technical and project management capability of the applicant;

the implementation plan;

the budget; and

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