ENG-1988 — Page 208

SOCIAL WELFARE

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members of society by fostering the development of their personality, character, sense of civic responsibility, social aptitudes and ability to use their leisure time beneficially.

To achieve these goals, the Social Welfare Department organised a wide variety of programmes, with special emphasis on the development of the potential of the youths. Apart from providing group work activities in the community centres, the department also promotes youth activities and encourages the establishment of self-programming youth groups and other voluntary youth groups, at the district level. The Opportunities for Youth Scheme which has been administered by the department since 1974, continued to receive enthusiastic response from young people with plans to implement service projects to meet the specific needs of the community. The Best Opportunities for Youth Scheme Award is organised to give recognition to outstanding projects.

Children and youth centres operated mainly by voluntary agencies serve as focal points for a variety of programmes and activities for the development of individual character, leadership, social ability and responsibility. In 1988, three children's centres, two youth centres and 17 combined children-and-youth centres were opened. At the end of the year, there were 175 children's centres and 180 youth centres in operation – with 121 being combined children and youth centres.

The value of providing outreaching social work service for the ‘unattached' young people who do not normally participate in organised youth activities is generally recognised. In 1988, there were 20 outreaching social work teams serving young people in priority areas with high incidence of juvenile crime, large youth population and high population density. School social work service has been provided by social workers in secondary schools, and guidance service to primary school students has also been provided by student guidance officers. These services are to help students with personal problems or problems in adjusting to school life. Upon the recommendations of the Social Welfare Advisory Committee, a number of improvements were made including the manning ratio, work approaches, and training of workers.

Uniformed organisations provide young people with opportunities for self-training in the development of character and leadership, community services, indoor and outdoor recreation. There are seven subvented uniformed organisations which cater for different target groups of young people and have different emphases on their programme content. In 1988, there were 80 000 members of these organisations. The Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme, which encourages and promotes the development of character and leadership among young people, has a membership of 40 000.

Rehabilitation of the Disabled

The object of rehabilitation services in Hong Kong is to integrate the disabled into the community. Services provided by government departments and welfare agencies are aimed at enabling handicapped people to develop fully their physical, mental and social capabilities. These services are co-ordinated by the Commissioner for Rehabilitation, who also conducts regular reviews of the Rehabilitation Programme Plan, which projects the requirements for and identifies the shortfalls of rehabilitation services for the next 10 years. The Medical and Health Department is responsible for providing medical rehabilitation services. The Social Welfare Department is responsible for the planning and development of a wide range of services for the disabled in order to meet their general welfare and social rehabilitation needs, either through direct service provision or subvention to welfare agencies. The Education Department is responsible for all aspects of the education and training of disabled children of school age and for boarding care and transport services