An Overview

In total, Government departments and agencies together with Government subvented organisations have pledged to deliver productivity gains amounting to $818 million in 1999-2000. Resources made available for redeployment or savings in expenditure are achieved through a variety of measures. Controlling officers have to confirm and satisfy themselves that these measures will not undermine their respective policy objectives. These measures include -

• simplifying procedures and removing duplication in work processes
• rationalising services using "one-stop" approach and more effective networking
• applying better use of information technology and office automation
• using human resources more flexibly
• contracting out work where it is more cost-effective
• clarifying responsibilities to reduce unnecessary supervision
• cutting down on overtime payments
• saving in consumption of energy and paper

Three-quarters of the productivity gains will be redeployed to provide more than 300 items of new or improved services in the year while the remaining one-quarter will be reflected in reduced expenditure.

Key initiatives in new or improved services are described in Part A of Section 3 below.

In addition, productivity gains will be achieved by the three executive departments serving the Housing Authority, the Provisional Urban Council and the Provisional Regional Council, namely the Housing Department, the Urban Services Department and the Regional Services Department respectively as well as the five Trading Fund departments, namely the Hong Kong Post Office, the Office of the Telecommunications Authority, the Land Registry, the Companies Registry and the Electrical & Mechanical Services Department (other than those divisions which are funded from Government expenditure). Their efforts in EPP are described in Part B of Section 3 below.