ENG-2006 — Page 242

198 Social Welfare

The CSSA Scheme

The CSSA Scheme is non-contributory but means-tested. The scheme provides cash assistance to people suffering from financial hardship to enable them to meet basic needs. Applicants must satisfy the stipulated residence requirements. At year's end, there were 295 333 CSSA cases providing assistance to 521 611 people, compared with 298 011 cases and 539 963 people in 2005. The scheme's total expenditure in 2006 amounted to $17.62 billion, representing a decrease of 0.5 per cent over the previous year.

Elderly people who have received CSSA for no less than one year are allowed under the Portable CSSA Scheme to continue receiving assistance in Guangdong or Fujian should they choose to retire there.

Intensified Support for Self-reliance Measures

The SWD continued to help able-bodied, but unemployed, CSSA recipients and other socially disadvantaged groups under the Support for Self-reliance Scheme during the year. In October, the department commissioned NGOs to launch the fourth batch of 40 Intensive Employment Assistance Projects, the My STEP (Special Training and Enhancement Programme) Project and the District Employment Assistance Trial Projects to provide tailor-made employment assistance to those CSSA recipients who are able to work but were jobless.

The SSA Scheme

The non-contributory SSA Scheme provides allowances to meet the special needs of the severely disabled and elderly people. It comprises Normal Disability Allowance, Higher Disability Allowance, Normal Old Age Allowance and Higher Old Age Allowance. At year's end, 580 840 people were receiving SSA, compared with 572 771 in 2005. The scheme's total expenditure during the year was $5.42 billion, an increase of 2.1 per cent over the previous year.

Accident Compensation Schemes

The Criminal and Law Enforcement Injuries Compensation Scheme offers ex gratia payments on a non-means-tested basis to innocent people injured or killed in crimes of violence or by law enforcement officers while combatting crime. In the event that a person is killed under such circumstances, payment will be given to his or her dependants. In 2006, $6.41 million was paid out under the scheme, compared to $10.58 million in the previous year. The Traffic Accident Victims Assistance (TAVA) Scheme provides quick financial assistance for people injured or for dependants of those killed in road traffic accidents on a non-means-tested basis regardless of who is responsible for the accident. During the year, $159.50 million was paid out under the scheme, compared with $156.64 million in 2005.

Emergency Relief

Emergency relief in the form of meals or cash-in-lieu of meals and other necessities is given to victims of natural and other disasters. Grants from the Emergency Relief Fund are paid to eligible victims or to their dependants in cases of death. Emergency relief was given to 495 victims of 17 disasters during the year.