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Social Welfare

Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation

The SWD subvents 13 residential drug treatment and rehabilitation centres and halfway houses, 11 counselling centres for psychotropic substance abusers and two centres for drug counselling. It also regulates the treatment and rehabilitation centres under the Drug Dependent Persons Treatment and Rehabilitation Centres (Licensing) Ordinance, and provides practical guidelines and professional advice on licensing requirements to safeguard the well- being of the drug-dependent residents.

District Support for Children and Youth

The SWD provides direct cash assistance via a District Support Scheme for Children and Youth Development to address the developmental needs of disadvantaged children and young people aged 24 or below.

Services for the Elderly

The government encourages elderly people to lead active and healthy lives, and offers community support to help them continue living in their homes. The SWD provides subsidised residential care for those who have long-term care needs but cannot receive adequate care at home.

The SWD's Opportunities for the Elderly Project encourages elderly people to take part in community affairs and in building an age-friendly community. It is subsidising 608 programmes with government grants totalling $16.53 million in the 2018-20 phase.

Senior Citizen Cards allow their holders to enjoy concessions, discounts and priority service provided by public and private organisations and government departments. There were 1.3 million cardholders as at end-2020.

Community Care and Support

The community care and support services subsidised by the SWD help about 50,000 needy elderly persons. The department subsidises 92 home care service teams and 88 day care centres/units for the elderly to support elderly persons living at home. Separately, at 31 December there were 227 recognised providers of home and day care services under the Pilot Scheme on Community Care Service Voucher for the Elderly.

Residential Care

There are around 72,000 residential care places in Hong Kong, of which around 31,000 are subsidised by the government, including around 2,000 occupied by Residential Care Service Voucher users. Recommendations by the SWD's Working Group on the Review of Ordinances and Codes of Practice for Residential Care Homes in May 2019 led the SWD in January 2020 to amend the Codes of Practice for Residential Care Homes (Elderly Persons) and for Residential Care Homes (Persons with Disabilities). The government is now preparing to amend the Residential Care Homes (Elderly Persons) Ordinance and the Residential Care Homes (Persons with Disabilities) Ordinance.

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