Hong Kong experts urge China to use the city’s experience in philanthropy
In Hong Kong, China, participants in a philanthropy forum called on the Chinese authorities to improve the legal regulation of the non-profit sector and use the city’s experience to develop social services on the mainland. In their view, the Greater Bay Area, which brings together Hong Kong, Macau and cities in Guangdong province, could become a platform for testing new mechanisms.
As the South China Morning Post reports, the discussion took place as part of the Philanthropy for Better Cities forum organised by the Hong Kong Jockey Club. Participants discussed priorities for the development of Chinese philanthropy over the next decade.
Legal environment and social services
Jin Jinping, an associate professor at Peking University’s law school, said charitable organisations need a more favourable legal and policy environment, including high-quality legislation and proper governance. According to her, amid economic uncertainty, Chinese companies are increasingly moving away from simple cash donations toward using their own operational capabilities to address social problems.
As an example, she cited logistics companies, which can use their systems to create supply chains in areas affected by natural disasters. Pharmaceutical companies, she said, can make the fight against rare diseases one of their key tasks, while consumer technology companies can view services for older people as a business growth opportunity.
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Wang Zhenyao, a former official at China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs, urged Beijing to build on Hong Kong’s mature philanthropy sector in order to modernise the entire social services sector. He also noted that the long-term success of businesses requires close links to public needs and population welfare objectives.
Greater Bay Area as a pilot platform
Wang Zhenyao named Hong Kong’s developed social work systems and infrastructure among its strengths. In his view, cross-border integration in the Greater Bay Area could facilitate the emergence of a new social services industry with millions of workers and output worth tens of trillions of yuan.
At the same time, panel participants pointed to barriers created by China’s law on foreign non-governmental organisations. It requires foreign NGOs to obtain a state or state-affiliated sponsor to open a permanent representative office on the mainland or to cooperate with a local entity for temporary activities. The law also prohibits such organisations from publicly raising funds and accepting Chinese citizens as members.
Wang Ming, founder of the Institute of Philanthropy at Tsinghua University, proposed seeking targeted relaxations or special rules for the Greater Bay Area rather than changing legislation overall. Jin supported an approach involving pilot programmes to test and refine rules for cross-border cooperation.
