The leap forward in ICT development in the social welfare sector of Hong Kong: Opportunities and impacts

Abstract

This chapter discusses the background of this leap forward and examines the three inter-related factors that have contributed to the progress: (1) information technology (IT) capacity, (2) strategy and (3) money. In terms of IT capacity, the decade before the leap forward had already seen substantial improvements in the IT infrastructure of non-governmental organisations (NGOs), especially among the larger ones. Many had introduced IT applications to manage their organisation and services but lagged behind in IT security, direct service provision and overall direction in their IT development. In addition, practitioners in the social welfare sector in Hong Kong are relatively young with a high level of IT proficiency.

In terms of strategy, the government has, since 2001, promulgated four IT strategy documents, which affected mainly the subvented social welfare sector. The fourth one was released in September 2021. In addition, the government has published a territory-wide IT blueprint, and part of the blueprint is to promote digital inclusion among disadvantaged groups.

Finally, in terms of money, the government introduced the Social Welfare Development Fund (SWDF) in 2010 with a total of HK$ 1 billion for nine financial years to support the subvented social welfare sector. More than a third of the amount went into IT project development. Also, since 2018, the government has set up an Innovation and Technology Fund for Application in Elderly and Rehabilitation Care (I&T Fund) with same amount of money for NGOs and private organisations operating subsidised long-term care services so that they can procure, rent or try out technology products for disadvantaged groups.

The chapter also discusses recent developments, such as the imbalance in IT capacity within the social welfare sector, varied management support, projects driven by money that prioritised development in organisation management, over-reliance on vendors, limited customer pressure and underutilised service data. The chapter also makes suggestions for future IT development in the social welfare sector in Hong Kong.