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Chapter 11

Social Welfare

The government helps individuals and families in need. The scope and extent of Hong Kong's welfare services have evolved steadily over the years, with total recurrent government expenditure on social welfare increasing by about 106 per cent in the past decade.

The Labour and Welfare Bureau formulates social welfare policies and oversees their implementation by the Social Welfare Department (SWD) and the Working Family Allowance Office of the Working Family and Student Financial Assistance Agency. The Social Welfare Advisory Committee, Elderly Commission, Rehabilitation Advisory Committee, Women's Commission and Commission on Children advise the government on welfare policies.

In 2018-19, the department's total recurrent expenditure was $76.7 billion, of which $53.9 billion, or 70.2 per cent, went towards financial assistance payments, $16.7 billion (21.8 per cent) went into recurrent subventions to non-governmental organisations (NGOs), $2.3 billion (3 per cent) was spent on other payments for welfare services, and the remaining $3.8 billion (5 per cent) was for departmental expenditure.

Social Welfare Services

Services for Families

Family services help preserve and strengthen the family as a unit, improve relationships among family members, enable individuals to prevent and deal with personal and family problems, and assist families by providing suitable services to meet their own needs.

Services for families in need are provided at three levels. At the primary level, the department tries to prevent family problems through early identification, public education, publicity and empowerment. A departmental hotline, 2343 2255, provides service information, counselling and other forms of assistance.

At the secondary level, 65 integrated family service centres and two integrated services centres offer a spectrum of preventive, supportive and remedial family services.

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