Press Releases
Applications for Health Care and Promotion Fund invited
The Food and Health Bureau is inviting non-profit-making organisations to
submit grant applications for the Non-Research Health Promotion Projects and
the Seed Funding Scheme under the Health Care and Promotion Fund (HCPF).
The Non-Research Health Promotion Projects should aim to help people adopt
healthier lifestyles by enhancing awareness, changing behaviour or creating
an environment that supports good health practices, while the Seed Funding
Scheme is to foster the development of innovative, effective and sustainable
health promotion programmes in the community.
"For the Non-Research Health Promotion Projects, priority for funding is
given to projects targeting underprivileged groups who are at risk of ill
health, and setting-based health promotion programmes such as those
conducted in schools, workplaces other community-based settings and primary
care settings," a spokesman for the bureau said today (February 25).
Higher funding priorities will be accorded to the following thematic areas:
I. Tobacco control
* Empowering the public, especially youth, women or those having stressful
occupations to abstain from smoking
* Motivating smokers to cease smoking
II. Lifestyle, nutrition and physical activity
* Enhancing government initiatives toward healthy eating and regular
physical exercise
* Empowering the working population to adopt healthy eating and physical
activity, especially at the workplace
* Equipping the younger generation to adopt healthy lifestyle practices, for
example, avoiding unhealthy habits, dangerous sex, alcohol and drug misuse
and maintaining healthy body mass index. In particular, promoting healthy
eating habits and physical activities to young children.
III. Mental well-being
* Promoting awareness of the importance of positive mental health, and early
detection and treatment of mental health problems
* Equipping underprivileged groups with knowledge and skills in stress
management
* Reducing stigma associated with mental health problems
IV. Injury prevention
* Promoting sensible drinking (including preventing binge drinking) to
reduce injury and other alcohol-related problems
* Engaging the community in reducing injury related to falls and transport
accidents
* Preventing unintentional injuries in children
The Seed Funding Scheme offers non-recurrent funding opportunities to
facilitate mobilisation of local resources through building partnerships
among public, private and non-governmental organisations to promote health
in the community.
Its assessment criteria include:
* Effectiveness and sustainability of the programme;
* Potential in building community capacity in health promotion;
* Relevance to local health promotion and feasibility of the proposal;
* Justification of requested budget;
* Effectiveness of evaluation plan, and
* Track record of the administering institution and applicants.
The closing date for applications is July 31, 2010. All applications will be
subject to rigorous review by the Health Care and Promotion Fund Committee
and its Promotion Sub-committee, which comprises health care professionals
and experts, individuals closely involved in community affairs, and
government representatives.
Principal applicants must represent a non-profit-making organisation, a
registered community group or a group formed under a registered
non-profit-making body. Successful applicants may be awarded full or partial
support normally not exceeding $300,000 on a one-off basis for Non-Research
Health Promotion Projects and $500,000 for the Seed Funding Scheme.
Established by the Government in 1995, the purpose of the HCPF is to
strengthen health promotion and disease prevention work. To date, a total of
179 health promotion projects have been supported.
Guidance notes and application forms can be obtained from the Research Fund
Secretariat, Food and Health Bureau, 18/F, Murray Building, Garden Road,
Central, or the website at (www.fhb.gov.hk/grants).
Enquiries can be made by fax at 3150 8993 or by email to
rfs@fhb.gov.hk.
Ends/Thursday, February 25, 2010
Issued at HKT 14:01
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