The Social Welfare Department set up the “Task Force for Review on Enhancement of LSGSS” in November 2017 and decided to review LSGSS according to the following scope of 8 items: (a) Operating environment of NGOs under the LSGSS (b) Review of staffing establishment and subvention benchmarks (c) Use of LSG/PF reserve and financial planning (d) Pay structures, staff turnover rate and vacancies (e) FSA-related activities and flexibility provided for NGOs (f) Mechanisms for reviewing FSAs and NGOs’ service performance assessment (g) Transparency and public accountability (h) Communication and participation of stakeholders After two years' review, it is expected that the Task Force should have discussed 6-8 items by the end of 2019. In this connection, the Council is going to organize three forums for the Boards and heads of concerned agencies in February 2020 to update the progress of the review, and to align the views of the sector with regard to the recommendations. Details of the events as follows: Date: 3 sessions 12 February 2020 (Wednesday) - Cantonese session 20 February 2020 (Thursday) - Cantonese session 21 February 2020 (Friday) - English session Time: 6:30 - 8:00pm (registration starts at 6:15pm) Venue: Duke of Windsor Social Service Building, 15 Hennessy Road, Wanchai Content: Progress update ...

NGO directors are shouldering increasing responsibilities owing to the more complex social service needs and monitoring by different stakeholders. Board members from diverse professional areas and backgrounds should primarily get themselves familiar with the structure and operation after joining an organization so as to make optimal decisions for the benefit of the agency they serve. Co-organized with Governance and Management Excellence for Public Benefit (GAME) again, the workshops comprising two sessions aims to equip new directors and committee members with better understanding of the sector and their roles and responsibilities as NGO governors. Details as below: Date: 18 January 2020 (Saturday) and 8 February 2020 (Saturday)     Time: 9:30am - 12:45pm Themes: Session 1 a) Understanding the NGO Sector and its Governance Speaker:     Mr K M Chan**, Steering Committee Member, HKCSS Institute Sharing Guest:     Ms Helena To, President, HKYWCA b) Board’s Role in Corporate Strategic Planning Speaker:     Dr Lo Chi-kin**, Former Chair, Oxfam Hong Kong Sharing Guest: Ms Bonnie So, Secretary General, Hong Kong Red Cross Session 2 a) Board-Management Partnership Speaker:     Ms Christine Fang**, Chairman, Senior Citizen Home Safety Association Sharing Guests:     Dr Joseph Kwok, Former Chairman, Fu Hong Society Ms Becky Luk, Former CEO, Fu Hong Society b) Board’s Oversight in Agency Accountability & Transparency Speakers:   ...

he “NGO Directors' Luncheon” series organized by our NGO Governance Platform Project and sponsored by Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants (HKICPA), is an occasion for board members and heads of our agency members to meet and exchange on governance issues.   The 13th luncheon will be held in October 2019. We are delighted to have Mr Rex Auyeung, Chairman of the MTR Corporation, as our special guest to share on his philosophy of corporate governance and how MTR Corporation embraces corporate responsibility in its operations. Details as follows: Date: 24 October 2019 (Thursday) Time: 12:30pm - 2pm (registration starts at 12:15pm) Format: Light lunch and theme sharing Language: Cantonese Venue: HKICPA, 27/F., Wu Chung House, 213 Queen's Road East, Wanchai, Hong Kong. Quota: 3 attendees for each agency (board members and agency head are welcome) You are cordially invited to participate in this event. Interested parties kindly fill in the online form before 18 October 2019 (Friday). Registration will be accepted on a first-come-first-served basis. For enquiries, please contact Ms Stella Ho, Project Director of the NGO Governance Platform Project, at 2922 9259. We look forward to seeing you at the luncheon! ...

One of the main responsibilities of an NGO board is to provide financial oversight of its organization.  To properly discharge such duty, NGO board members must have an understanding of nonprofit financial basics.  Mastering financial literacy not only facilities directors to make sound decisions but also enables them to recognize potential warning signs. To promote good financial governance in the sector, the Project will collaborate with our Strategic Partner, the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants (HKICPA) again to re-run the NGO Treasurers’ Club Dialogue Series. A series of three interactive workshops  will be held from September to November 2019. Professional accountants from HKICPA will be facilitators to highlight essential financial concepts in NGO context. Participants can also learn from other agencies’ financial practices. Details are as follows: 1st session: 27 September 2019 “Understanding Management Accounts for Decision Making” 2nd session: 25 October 2019 “How to Interpret Financial Statements and Auditor’s Report” 3rd session: 29 November 2019 “Financial Planning and Budgeting” Time: 6:30pm – 8:30pm Venue: Central Quota: 30 participants / session Language: Cantonese (materials in English) Fee: HKD100 per session; HKD250 for three sessions*Certificate of attendance will be issued to participants who attended three sessions Target: Board / Committee members of HKCSS agency members/ The Hong Kong Joint Council ...

Some reference materials published by the National Council for Voluntary Organizations have been uploaded to the Project website for reference of interested parties. Governance wheel  Charities Governance Code for Larger Charities Charities Governance Code for Smaller Charities Implementing the Charity Governance Code – A Toolkit for Micro Charities ...