HKJC injects nearly HK$70 million to boost cross-boundary social welfare in the Greater Bay Area

The Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) has pledged nearly HK$70 million to fund a new three-year initiative aimed at enhancing cross-boundary social welfare services for Hong Kong residents living in mainland China. 

The funding will support the "Jockey Club • Connecting Hearts: Moving Ahead," which is designed to foster regional collaboration and upgrade the skills of local social welfare professionals.

Responding to growing demand across the border

With a rising number of Hong Kong citizens choosing to work, live, and retire in the Greater Bay Area, the demand for integrated and innovative social services has surged. 

To address these evolving community needs, the Jockey Club Charities Trust is backing a program operated by Connecting Hearts Limited. 

The initiative officially kicked off on Tuesday with a launch ceremony and pilot class attended by around 400 participants, alongside senior figures including Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han and Jockey Club steward Bernard Charnwut Chan.

During the launch event, Chan explained that the financial injection is a direct response to the increasing welfare needs of Hong Kong people residing on the mainland. 

He urged social welfare practitioners to use this opportunity to deepen their understanding of national development trends and mainland service models, noting that this knowledge would help advance the local sector in alignment with broader national goals. 

Cultivating talent and fostering regional integration

The three-year scheme is built upon two main pillars focusing on capacity building and regional integration. 

On the educational front, the program plans to equip nearly 1,800 social welfare professionals with the leadership skills and innovative thinking required to tackle modern demographic and technological challenges. 

The training initiatives will include specialized courses for mid-level management to study regional welfare services, overseas study tours focused on service innovation, and scholarships for prospective sector leaders to pursue master's degrees locally or abroad.

Simultaneously, the initiative seeks to deepen operational ties between welfare organizations in Hong Kong and the broader Greater Bay Area. 

Building on existing agreements, the program aims to incubate roughly one hundred collaborative concepts covering areas such as elderly care, mental health rehabilitation, poverty alleviation, and family services. 

From these initial concepts, fifteen highly promising projects will receive additional funding to be developed into tangible pilot programs. 

Organizers hope these pilot projects will serve as sustainable and replicable models, ensuring that Hong Kong residents receive high-quality, comprehensive support regardless of which side of the border they choose to call home.

𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗔𝗽𝗽 ↓