HK's poverty line to be set in 2013: Chief Secretary

Hong Kong plans to designate the city's first official poverty line by the end of this year, Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said on Friday, while attending a forum discussing business sector's role in the poverty alleviation.

Lam said that the Commission on Poverty, the commission has agreed on the general framework of establishing the line and the threshold has been expected to be set at half of the median household income.

"It's not a political gesture," Lam said. "The setting of this line shows government's persistence and determination in helping the poor." The line will be an instrument, which gives guidelines to clarify and study the poverty population, assist policy making and evaluate the policies in poverty alleviation, she said.

To carry the work of poverty alleviation a step forward, Lam asked the authorities, the non-governmental sector and the business sector to work in unison. "For the government, it's not only important to carry out effective policies, but to build a platform for the business sector and NGOs to share their resources and information," she said

The government will further intensify efforts in poverty alleviation and will propose an extra fund of HK$ 15 billion ($1.9 billion) for the Community Care Fund next Friday to the Legislative Council, Lam mentioned. But she also stated that she would not persuade the business sector to donate for the time being.

"The business sector has great advantage in acquiring resources, networks, knowledge and experience," Lam said, "but they have not made full use of these strengths." The business sector should focus more on enhancing education and creating jobs, which would improve the upward mobility of the society and break the inter-generational poverty predicament, she said.

According to data released by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service, the number of people in poverty has reached 1.18 million in 2012, making up 17.6% of the city's population. In the group aged above 65, 33.4% of the people are living in poverty. Lam said that the polarization of the society could be a great barrier to Hong Kong's economic transition, and could weaken the city's competitiveness.