ENG-1980 — Page 167

9

Social Welfare

福社

FED

HONG KONG's social welfare services came under the scrutiny of social workers from all over the world in July, 1980, when the territory hosted the 20th International Conference on Social Welfare and two associated professional gatherings, the Symposium of the International Federation of Social Workers and the International Congress of Schools of Social Work. Altogether, some 465 overseas and 62 local delegates took part.

Still further attention was focused on Hong Kong when, toward the close of the conference, a Hong Kong social worker became the first Asian to be elected President of the International Council of Social Welfare. The appointment was the second for the year at international level in the field of social welfare, following the election of a local ortho- paedic surgeon as President of Rehabilitation International in June.

Another significant development during the year was the publication in April of a Green Paper on the care and education of pre-primary and primary school-children. The paper outlined, inter alia, the government's proposals for improving care and education services for children under six years of age, and included a new scheme of fee assistance for low-income families. A White Paper, taking into consideration the views expressed by the public and interested parties, will be drafted for publication in 1981.

Apart from these highlights, the year in social welfare was chiefly devoted to planning and implementing the policies and programmes laid down in the 1979 White Paper on Social Welfare into the 1980s. In April, the disability allowance was extended to the profoundly deaf, and a disability supplement was introduced for partially disabled people receiving public assistance. Among the other important advances during the year was the opening of a housing estate community centre and two community halls, and the addition of 595 places in hostels for the elderly in public housing estates, 275 places in homes for the mentally-handicapped and physically-disabled, and 1,436 subvented places in day-care centres (including 60 for mildly mentally-handicapped children).

Considerable progress was also made in obtaining public housing premises and land allocations for more residential facilities for the elderly and the disabled, and in the detailed planning of projects that will be opened over the next five years.

The additional services arising from the 1979 White Paper and the 1977 White Paper on Rehabilitation were reflected in considerable increases in both capital and recurrent expenditure. Some $773.1 million in recurrent expenditure and $18.7 million in capital expenditure is being spent on social welfare in the 1980-1 financial year. This is an increase of $112 million in recurrent expenditure and $2.6 million in capital expenditure over 1979-80.

Responsibility for carrying out government policies on social security and social welfare rests with the Director of Social Welfare, who heads the Social Welfare Department. The department is organised on a regional basis, with 11 district offices divided into four