Kaifong associations ( Chinese: 街坊會) or kaifong welfare associations ( Chinese: 街坊福利會) are traditional mutual aid organisations which emerged in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. They were set up with the help of the

Secretariat for Chinese Affairs The Home Affairs Department is an executive agency in the government of Hong Kong responsible for internal affairs of the territory. It reports to the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau, headed by the Secretary for Home Affairs. Purpose The D ...

, particularly the Society Welfare Council, of the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

colonial

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

, which had the intention of developing non-governmental civil society for the purpose of promoting moderate politics among the general public.''Hegemonies Compared,'' ch. "State Formation in Hong Kong," sec. the Cold War & the Communist Takeover of China in 1949, subsec. State Power & the Third Sector in Colonial Society, p.107 The term kaifong is a Cantonese romanisation of the Chinese 街坊, which means people living in the same neighbourhood, and kaifong associations mainly aim at serving the residents of specific neighbourhoods. The main purpose was to provide low cost or free services in areas such as education and health care for the many refugees from China. By 1958, there were twenty-one; by 1958, twenty-eight. After 1958, the government tried to use the kaifong associations to communicate with the local population. In 1960, kaifong associations extended their services to areas such as legal support or environmental protection. After the introduction of the in 1969, the importance of kaifong associations declined. Nevertheless, many kaifong associations remain active today.

List

* Aberdeen Kai-fong Welfare Association * Chai Wan Resettlement Kaifong Welfare Association * Cheung Sha Wan Kaifong Welfare Association * Chuk Yuen Cottage Area Kaifong Welfare Advancement Committee * Mongkok Kaifong Association * Sham Shui Po Kaifong Welfare Advancement Association * Tai Hang Sai Kaifong Welfare Association * Tsim Sha Tsui Kaifong Welfare Association * Wang Tau Hom Resettlement Kaifong Welfare Association * Yaumati Kaifong Welfare Advancement Association

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Further reading