Community Involvement Projects on Maintenance 2009-10

Community Involvement Projects on Maintenance 2009-10

Guidelines

Introduction

The Community Involvement Projects on Maintenance (CIPM) is administered by the Home Affairs Bureau (HAB). Through providing sponsorship to organisations in organising projects, CIPM aims to:-

(a) enhance public awareness of the rights of maintenance payees;

(b) enhance public awareness of the services available to maintenance payees in the event of default payment by maintenance payers;

Guidelines for Submission of Proposed Projects

1. The proposed projects must be carried out and completed between July 2009 and January 2010.

2. Applicants must be a registered organisation, a statutory body or community organisation. These organisations/bodies or their sub-groups will be regarded as a unit and each unit is allowed to submit one application only. As a general rule, applicants with the same address will be treated as the same unit. If there is more than one application submitted from a unit, all applications submitted by the unit will not be entertained.

3. Approved projects must be carried out in Hong Kong and completed by 29 January 2010 (Friday). Projects already in progress will not be sponsored.

4. The maximum sponsorship for a single proposed project is normally $50,000. The total sponsorship for project proposals submitted by sub-groups from a single organisation shall not exceed $100,000.

5. The proposed projects must not be profit-making and must be held in Hong Kong. The proposed projects must not be for political, religious or commercial purposes.

6. Proposed projects must include a detailed breakdown of activities to be sponsored. Expenses incurred for a proposed project in respect of activities held prior to the written approval from HAB will not be reimbursed.

7. Publications and audio/visual materials relating to the projects must not infringe intellectual property rights, and shall not be produced for sale.

8. If an organisation wishes to organise a proposed project with other organisations, it should state so clearly in its application and provide relevant details, particularly the split of cost/sponsorship for the proposed project amongst all the relevant organisations. Otherwise, HAB reserves the right to withdraw the sponsorship.

9. Organisations which intend to apply for, or accept, sponsorship from other organisations (including other government organisations), in cash or in kind, should provide relevant details in the submission, or give notice to HAB if it occurs after the proposed project is submitted or approved. HAB reserves the right to withdraw the sponsorship should the organisation fail to do so. Fees/charges, if any, on participants of the proposed projects should be set out clearly in the submission.

10. There is no guarantee that all proposed projects will receive full or partial sponsorship.

11. HAB does not accept any responsibilities for any claims, demands, or liabilities arising from the sponsored project. Organisations should take out public liability insurance for the projects as appropriate.

12. Organisations organising the approved projects are required to submit a Project Report to evaluate the activities held and a Financial Report to account for the actual expenditure of the projects. The Reports are to be submitted by 12 February 2010 (Friday). Reimbursement will be made according to actual expenses.

13. Sponsored organisations should make public and state/announce in their promotional materials/publications/exhibition/activities that “The content of this publication/exhibition/activities represents the opinion of our organisation only.”

Vetting of Proposed Projects

1. In assessing the applications, the Committee[1] will take into account but not limited to the following: -

(a) the effectiveness of the proposed project in achieving the objectives of CIPM;

(b) the size of the beneficiaries;

(d) the requested amount of sponsorship and the cost-effectiveness of the proposed project; and

(e) the background, expertise qualification and past experience of the organisation in organising similar activities.

2. There is no pre-determined restriction as to the content and format of proposed projects.

3. The above criteria are for general guidance only. The Committee may vary the amount of sponsorship having regard to the individual merits of the application.

4. The decision on the approval of projects and the amount to be sponsored rests, if applicable, with the Committee. The Committee’s decision is final.

Application Procedures for CIPM

1. Completed Project Proposal Form (attached at Annex A) with all necessary supporting documents should be forwarded by post to: Home Affairs Bureau, 31/F Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong; or by fax to 2591 6002. Please specify “Community Involvement Projects on Maintenance” on the envelope or fax cover.

2. Deadline for the submission of proposed projects is 15 May 2009 (Friday). The date of fax received by HAB and, in case of submission by posts, the postmark date on the envelope will be treated as the date of submission. Receipt of submission will be acknowledged in writing. Each submission will be assigned with a Project Number which should be quoted when making enquiries.

3. This guideline is available on the homepage of HAB (www.hab.gov.hk).

4. Submissions will not be considered if they are received after the deadline or if they do not include all requested information/documents.

5. All submissions, whether approved or not, will not be returned.

6. Organisations whose proposed projects are approved, will be notified by an approval letter by the end of June 2009, specifying the approved activities in the proposed projects and the amount of sponsorship. Proposed projects should be deemed to be rejected if no approval letter is received by end of July 2009.

Organisation of Approved Projects

1. Approved projects should be organised and expenses should be incurred as specified in the approval letter.

2. Publications and publicity materials relating to the approved projects should bear the acknowledgement “Sponsored by the Home Affairs Bureau” on the cover/front-page in legible forms. Two copies of the relevant souvenirs, posters, publications etc. should be submitted to HAB for record purpose and for public viewing.

3. Publications and audio/visual materials relating to the approved projects must not infringe copyright or intellectual property rights and must not be produced for sale. The organisations should ensure that materials do not infringe any intellectual property rights. Organisations who intend to include or use copyright materials in their production must obtain prior written consent from the respective copyright owners.

4. Organisations must notify the Committee immediately in writing in the event if the organisation decides to cancel the project, cancel any activities of the project, or make substantial changes to the approved project in the course of organising with a detailed explanation. Failing to do so may result in withdrawal of sponsorship. Should the Committee find the explanations unacceptable, reimbursement will not be made for expenses already incurred in the project. No reimbursement will be made if the Committee considers that the cancellation of the project is a result of negligence on the part of the organisation.

5. If the officer-in-charge as specified on the Project Proposal Form is to be replaced during the implementation of the approved project, the organisation should give HAB formal notice in writing. The organisation should ensure that the incoming officer-in-charge is fully briefed on the state of finance and progress of the approved project.

Use of Sponsorship

1. All expenses for the approved project must be accountable.

2. Upon application from a successful applicant, a maximum of 50% of the sponsorship could be passed to the organisation before the commencement of the project. The balance of the sponsorship will be reimbursed to the organisation upon completion of the Project Report and the provision of the Financial Report to the satisfaction of HAB.

3. Reimbursement will be made according to the actual expenses. Any surplus or unused balance of disbursed/approved sponsorship from HAB for the project must be returned to HAB.

4. For any single procurement of goods exceeding $1,500 or services exceeding $9,000, more than one quotation should be obtained. HAB reserves the right to refuse sponsoring suspected items.

5. Claims for reimbursement of expenses on equipment, furniture, uniforms for participants and recurrent expenditure (e.g. staff costs) will not be accepted. The Projects must be non profit-making. Organisations using internal resources to organise activities should note the following:-

(a) if the instructor of an activity is a staff member of the organiser, the expenditure incurred should normally be regarded as staff costs; and

(b) if an activity is held at a service centre or an office of the organiser, no rental expenses on the venue should be incurred. If an activity is held at a venue of another unit under the same organisation and rental payment has to be made, the organisation should produce the rent receipt issued by the unit concerned.

6. Each expenditure item must be supported by the original receipt, clearly showing the names of companies providing the goods or services, description of the goods or services, date and amount of expenditure. Other documents, such as delivery notes and quotations, will not be accepted as support for claims for reimbursement. Each receipt should be certified correct by the officer-in-charge of the project with the organisation seal.

7. For expenditure items without official receipts, for example, allowance for volunteer or travelling expenses, the purpose, date and amount of expenditure should be recorded on a separate sheet, certified correct by the officer-in-charge of the project with the organisation seal.

8. In case the actual expenditure falls short of the total estimated expenditure of the proposed project (i.e. including expenditure to be covered by sources of income other than sponsorship from HAB), the final disbursed amount of sponsorship from HAB might be reduced on a pro rata basis, based on the percentage of the approved amount of sponsorship from HAB over the total estimated expenditure of the proposed project.

Project Report and Financial Report

1. Upon completion of the project, the organisation is required to submit to HAB a Project Report and a Financial Report by 12 February 2009 (Friday). Both Reports should be prepared in A4-size papers. HAB would not be able to process and disburse the remaining approved amount of sponsorship to the organisation if the latter fails to submit the Reports by the above deadline.

2. The Project Report should cover the following, using the template attached at Annex B –

(a) particulars of the project, including the name, Project Number, objective, description, date, venue and number of participants (male and female) (if more than one activities are held, above details should be given for each activity);

(b) mechanism for evaluation, such as the distribution of questionnaires;

(d) photographs or video taken during the activities; and

(e) evaluation of the project, including –

how the project achieved the objectives of CIPM;

experience gained from organising the project;

difficulties and limitations encountered and solutions;

whether the expected results of the project have been achieved, if not, the reasons; and

other recommendations and feedback.

3. The Financial Report should cover the following, using the template at Annex C –

(a) particulars of the project, including the name and Project Number;

(b) a section on income, showing the amount of HAB’s advance sponsorship, other sources of income and balance of sponsorship to be disbursed by HAB;

(c) a section on expenditure, showing the brief description, unit costs and quantity (if applicable), and the total amount spent for each item, with original receipts affixed in sequential order; and

(d) a section on reimbursement of the balance of sponsorship, showing the amount requested for reimbursement or the amount to be returned to HAB and justifications.

4. All Reports should be certified and signed by the officer-in-charge of the organisation with the organisation seal.

5. All Reports (together with its relevant documents) submitted will not be returned. HAB reserves the rights to publicise all Reports.

Enquiries

For enquiries, please contact Miss Maggie Kwong of HAB at 2835 1239.

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[1] The Vetting Committee of CIPM consists of representatives from HAB, and where necessary, relevant Government Bureau(x)/Department(s). The Committee will consider the applicants on the basis of their individual merits.