(Policy Address 2023) New service centers, care teams to be set up for ethnic minorities

John Lee said in his policy address Wednesday that the government will set up two additional support service centers for ethnic minorities next year, one in Kowloon Central and the other in New Territories East, bringing the total number of these centers to 10.

Lee said ethnic minorities form an integral part of Hong Kong and the government has been providing them with services and support on various fronts, such as integration into the community, education, employment, welfare and healthcare.

Lee said the centers provide ethnic minorities with language classes, after-school tutorial classes, integration programs, and counseling services. Each of the centers will also be invited to set up one ethnic minority Care Team to reach out to different households, understand their needs, and introduce public services that are available to them.

The government will continue to enhance the support provided by these centers for ethnic minorities new arrivals and youths, and will regularise the District-based Programmes for Racial Harmony, Lee added.

In terms of education, Lee said the Education Bureau has designed Online Chinese Language Self-learning Resources for non-Chinese speaking students to provide diversified learning materials, while also preparing for the offer of after-school Chinese language courses for lower primary non-Chinese speaking students on a trial basis using adapted learning materials for the Youth Chinese Test.

The Summer Bridging Programme will also be expanded to include non-Chinese speaking students progressing to primary 5 and primary 6 starting from the 2023/24 school year, with the number of schools that provide school-based life planning services for NCS students increasing.

Lee also noted that the Social Welfare Department will extend the Ethnic Minority District Ambassador pilot scheme for three years to engage ethnic minorities or designated persons to support ethnic minorities in the welfare service units of NGOs and the department.