The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust
The Club can trace its long tradition of donating to charitable causes back to at least 1915, but it was in the 1950s, as Hong Kong struggled to cope with post-war reconstruction and a massive influx of immigrants, that this role became integral to its operation. In 1955, the Club formally decided to devote its surplus each year to charity and community projects, and in 1959, a separate company, the Hong Kong Jockey Club (Charities) Ltd, was formed to administer donations. In 1993, a new entity was established, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, to reflect the evolving nature, scale and scope of donations. The Charities Trust is one of the world’s top ten charity donors.
The Trust’s substantial donations to the community are made possible by the Club’s unique integrated business model, which comprises racing and racecourse entertainment, responsible sports wagering and lottery, a membership club, and charities and community contribution. Approximately 90% of the Club’s annual operating surplus after tax is donated to the Trust, enabling it to play a significant role in the community’s development.
Working with the Government, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and community partners, the Trust is committed to improving the quality of life of the people of Hong Kong. As a philanthropic organisation in its own right, the Trust also proactively identifies and initiates projects that anticipate future community and social needs.
Five Priority Areas
Over many years, the Club has established its position as a major social partner in fostering a caring and inclusive community in Hong Kong. It accomplishes this through donations made to its community partners via The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust; various Trust-initiated projects; and by organising its own events that allow people to experience a healthy and vibrant lifestyle.
Today, the Trust contributes across various areas of social needs and focuses on five strategic areas:
Positive Ageing & Elderly Care
Children & Youth Development
Healthy Community
Talent & Sector Development
Sports & Culture
Philanthropy for Better Cities Forum 2023
Philanthropy for Fairer Societies
Global wealth inequality is widening, showing no signs of respite. Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, the world’s richest 1% captured 67% of all new wealth. At the same time, we are seeing inflation outpacing wage growth, technological innovation leading to large-scale job losses, climate change disproportionately impacting the vulnerable, and rapid urbanization creating uneven distribution of resources. These trends are exacerbating an already challenging scenario, leading to unfair economic and social development as well as frustration and discontent across generations.
The quest for fairer societies is not new, and it is now a globally interconnected quest. It is a global effort that require collective action and collaboration across borders. This calls for significant innovation of existing social systems and flexibility to adapt or create new institutions that drive fairer societies. It also calls for deeper global dialogue that values and learns from East and West, and calls for us to probe into different models of doing philanthropy.
Philanthropy, while small in terms of overall capital, has the greatest freedom to drive innovation and help build the linkages and institutions of tomorrow. Its capital is flexible, risk taking and not beholden to expectations of market and political cycles. The world has seen how the flexible, innovative, and catalytic nature of philanthropy can plug gaps in the socioeconomic ecosystem and how philanthropy can take a significant role in tackling the most challenging social issues in cross-sectoral collaboration with different actors.
The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust (HKJCCT) is committed to advancing this agenda, and is pleased to host the Philanthropy for Better Cities Forum 2023 with the overarching theme: Philanthropy for Fairer Societies.
The forum aims to host debates and discussion among philanthropic, academic, government leaders that reimagine new social and economic model to strive for fairness of opportunities, fairer outcomes, and explore how 21st century philanthropies should evolve in Asia.
We have deep conviction that this forum will challenge the status quo and serve as a pivotal moment in steering our collective trajectory towards fairer societies in the future.