Presently China has nearly 60 million disaster victims,
22 million urban low-income residents who rely on social
insurance, and more than 75 million farmers in absolute
poverty.
Charitable work in China started in the late 1980s and
has experienced three stages ¡ª a difficult start, a phase
of gradual development, and presently a recovery period.
China¡¯s civil system has established a network for social
support and has managed to raise 28.4 billion RMB in the
past 9 years. The number of registered non-government organizations
has reached 289,000. The Amity Foundation initiated by Chinese
Christians is one among them.
Local churches see it as their long-term ministry to help
the poor through social service. In 2005, the Social Service
Department of CCC/TSPM encouraged churches in Shanghai,
Dalian and Zhejiang Province to establish centers for infantile
autism. In Hunan and Henan Provinces, local churches and
communities held training seminars for HIV/AIDS prevention.
About 1,000 people attended the training sessions. Besides,
a number of poor families and orphans received living subsidies.
The Social Service Department also helped to re-build schools
for more than 1,000 students in Tibet and Jiangxi Provinces.
Over 100 homes for the elderly were established in Inner
Mongolia, Henan, Jiangsu, Fujian and many other provinces,
which enable 2,000 senior citizens to live comfortably.
The department also set up clinics in more than 11 provinces
and cities which benefited 10,000 local people in poverty.
