Charity On The 17th

Background

Chi Heng Foundation (CHF) was founded in 1998 and later became a registered charity in Hong Kong. The meaning of “Chi Heng” can be interpreted as “knowledge in action,” and the philosophy of the organization is based on the idea that we must act on our knowledge to help less fortunate people.

CHF’s work in China includes AIDS prevention targeting vulnerable groups and care for AIDS patients and their children. Since 2002, the organization has been providing aid to children impacted by AIDS in central China (more on China AIDS epidemic).

Introduction

In Fall 2002, Chi Heng began providing education support to AIDS orphans in China. Starting from a single village in central China, we reached 127 primary and junior high students. In the 2009/2010 academic year, Chi Heng supported over 8,000 students in primary, junior high, senior high schools and universities. In this section, you will be able to gain an understanding of the thoughts, feelings and personal growth of the sponsored children in China.

No Orphanages

CHF supports the placement of children locally and those living with relatives. To limit the stigma that too often comes with being an AIDS orphan, CHF does not place children in orphanages. Allowing the children to grow up in a familiar environment with other non-AIDS impacted children is invaluable in providing a sense of comfort and belonging.

Fund Distribution

Our funds cover basic education fees, merit-based scholarship and need-based additional support for room and board and other living expenses. All funds are given to schools and programs directly to ensure they are used for the children’s needs. Our strategy is to continue to fund students, village by village.

Long-term Commitment

CHF's program is a long-term commitment; our goal is to help children complete their education, rather than just giving them one-off support.

Finite Project

There is clear end goal for this project, which will be completed when the last AIDS orphan graduates from school. As the HIV population in the Central China area is stable now given that this method of blood collection has stopped, it is possible to accurately predict how many people are infected and how many children we need to help. As there is a limited window of opportunity in which we can help these children, obtaining funding will be most crucial over the next 5-7 years.

Easy to Verify

Determining eligibility of AIDS-impacted children for our programs is not subjective. We can scientifically verify the HIV/AIDS status of the recipients’ parents. This eliminates the possibility of abuse of the system.

Sole Operator

CHF is the only privately funded foundation focusing on helping AIDS orphans in Central China that is operating on such a large scale. A number of NGOs have attempted to set up projects in the areas in which we operate, but have not been permitted by the government to do so. We believe CHF has been allowed to carry on with its work for two reasons: The project is regarded as education oriented which is seen as less politically sensitive than AIDS The extremely low profile nature of CHF and its work