No funding cuts to Hong Kong arts groups for next 3 years, agency chief pledges

Hong Kong’s arts funding body has said it will not cut financial support to arts groups and artists for the next three years, even as it undertakes a review of its grant system amid tightening public finances.The Hong Kong Arts Development Council’s (HKADC) pledge on Monday comes amid a government effort to get statutory bodies to reduce spending, as reinforced by finance chief Paul Chan Mo-po’s latest budget in February.The HKADC, along with other government bodies, faces ongoing reductions of about 2 per cent to its recurrent subvention this financial year, as the government presses ahead with spending cuts. Most bureaus and departments were required to reduce expenditure by 1 per cent in 2024-25 and 2 per cent annually from 2025-26 through to 2027-28, amounting to a cumulative 7 per cent across the four financial years.“I think I can make a promise, and I think this is a responsible promise from the HKADC, that in the next three years, even if government funding is reduced, we will not reduce the grants to our arts sector,” council chairman Kenneth Fok Kai-kong said.“This is the council’s collective decision … a commitment we can give to the arts and culture sector.”The council would instead aim to save costs internally and optimise how public funds were used, he added.The council currently supports more than 50 arts groups annually. It funded more than 300 projects in the 2024–25 financial year, according to figures released on Monday.