In celebration of The Hong Kong Jockey Club’s 140th anniversary, the Club announced today (13 April) that its Charities Trust has committed HK$1.4 billion to support five youth development initiatives. These include two strategic collaborations with the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau (HYAB) announced in the Chief Executive’s 2024 Policy Address.

This announcement was the highlight of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Community Day at Sha Tin Racecourse, attended by over 200 charity and community representatives. Officiating were HKSAR Government Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak, Club Chairman Michael Lee, Club Deputy Chairman Martin Liao and Club Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges.

Club Chairman Michael Lee said that young people are vital to our society’s sustainable and prosperous development. This is why Youth Development and Poverty Alleviation is one of the priority areas of the Club’s charities strategy. With this in mind, the Club has initiated and supported a wide range of programmes designed to help young people become active citizens and make a difference in society. The youth initiatives announced today aim to provide young people with enhanced support, diverse experiences and development opportunities that will equip them for the future. The Club hopes through these measures to nurture a new generation of multi-talented young people, who will not only feel hope for the future but be ready to contribute to society’s development. The Club looks forward to strengthening multilateral collaboration as it works with its partners to launch more innovative initiatives to address the changing needs of our society.

Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak emphasised the HKSAR Government’s commitment to youth development, and expressed her appreciation for the Club’s longstanding support to the relevant work, including the two strategic collaborations with the Club’s Charities Trust announced in the 2024 Policy Address, namely the enhanced HYAB JC Scheme for Youth Life Planning, launched by the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau and the Youth Development Commission (YDC), which aims to assist secondary school students in realising their life planning and seizing national development opportunities; and the conversion of part of Youth Square into a new interactive space where young people can gather, exchange ideas, develop their potential and participate in different activities.

The five projects aim to “level up” young people at critical periods in their developmental journey and help them build a resilient sense of self and trajectory in life, thereby establishing a foundation for a successful future. They also echo President Xi Jinping's remarks that Hong Kong will prosper only when its young people thrive, as well as the latest youth development initiatives announced in the annual Policy Address. The key components of the donation are:

1.      HYAB JC Scheme for Youth Life Planning
The Trust has provided funding to support this enhanced scheme implemented by the HYAB and the YDC, which aims to assist secondary school students in realising their life planning. The scheme encourages successful applicants and their collaborating schools to apply the core elements of the Trust-created and funded Project CLAP@JC, including the Hong Kong Benchmarks for Career and Life Development©, CV360®, and the Youth Career Development Competency Scale.

2.      New interactive space at Youth Square
Youth Square (YS), operating since 2010, is a key HKSAR Government initiative to promote youth development. As announced in the 2024 Policy Address, the HYAB will convert part of YS to establish a new interactive space with funding support from the Trust. Young people are invited to suggest uses, facilities and operation modes for this space. In addition, the HYAB will roll out the “Good Stories of Hong Kong Youth” Programme by reserving part of YS for setting up a video studio for young people to produce videos showcasing positive stories of Hong Kong youth, and providing relevant training on production and filming of video clippings.

3.      JC Campsite Reimagination Project
Most of Hong Kong's recreational campsites, built between the 1960s and 1980s with initial funding from the Trust, now require redevelopment to meet modern needs. The upgraded campsites will provide the community, especially young people, with unique recreational and educational experiences, reinforcing the many positive benefits of outdoor learning and helping to improve physical and mental well-being. To date, three projects have been approved: Wu Kwai Sha Youth Village by Chinese Young Men’s Christian Association of Hong Kong in Ma On Shan, Bradbury Camp by The Boys’ & Girls’ Clubs Association of Hong Kong in Wong Yi Chau, and Choi Chee Ming Luen Kwong Scout Centre by The Scout Association of Hong Kong in Yuen Long.

4.      Enhancing Life Mobility Potential of Youth
This Trust-initiated project seeks to enhance the life mobility potential of young people through an innovative multi-stage intervention model. The project will help them develop a sense of agency, while a two-year “Professional Traineeship” programme for young graduates entering the workforce will help enhance their social mobility.

5.      JC Echoes of Love Fund
Established and funded by the Trust and operated by the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui Welfare Council, this project has developed a positive trajectory framework for bereaved children and young people under the age of 18 impacted by the loss of a parent. A professional team of dedicated Trajectory Development Managers provides bereavement support services and designs individualised development plans for bereaved children. To facilitate the implementation of these plans, the Fund offers a monthly stipend of a maximum of HK$2,000 for up to five years. The project will benefit about 1,000 bereaved children and young people and their caregivers.

The Club initiated the annual Community Day race meeting in 2005 as a way of honouring its successful partnerships with Government and community organisations for the betterment of society. This initiative followed the generous donation of a silver racing trophy, over 170 years old, by the late Tobias Brown, in recognition of the Club's charitable contributions to the community. It has since been renamed The Hong Kong Jockey Club Community Trophy. It was won this year by GUSTOSISIMO, ridden by Angus Chung. Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak presented the trophy to owner Edwin Cheung.

As a not-for-profit sports and charity organisation rooted in Hong Kong for 140 years, the Club has a unique integrated business model through which racing and responsible sports wagering generate substantial tax contributions, charity support and employment opportunities for Hong Kong. Under the banner “With You. Then. Now. Always.” the Club is organising a series of celebratory initiatives to mark its 140th Anniversary and to recognise Hong Kong people’s contribution to its mission, which is to act continuously for the betterment of society. For more information, visit https://campaign.hkjc.com/140/en/.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club

Founded in 1884, The Hong Kong Jockey Club is a world-class racing club that acts continuously for the betterment of society. The Club has a unique integrated business model comprising racing and racecourse entertainment, a membership club, responsible sports wagering and lottery, and charities and community contribution. Through this model, the Club generates economic and social value for the community and supports the HKSAR Government in combatting illegal gambling. In 2023/24, the Club returned a total of HK$40.1 billion to the community. This included HK$29.9 billion to the HKSAR Government in duty, profits tax and Lotteries Fund contributions and HK$10.2 billion in approved charity donations. The Club is Hong Kong’s largest single taxpayer and one of the city’s major employers. Its Charities Trust is one of the world’s leading charity donors.