Overview
Although funding for research in Hong Kong comes from several sources, the Research Grants Council, as part of the University Grants Committee, is recognised as being the main public funding body that provides financial support for academic research in Hong Kong.
In the 1999-2000 academic year, total research expenditure from all sources on research projects, contracts, staff and studentships amounted to HK$4,451 million. This represented approximately 0.36 per cent of Hong Kong's Gross Domestic Product in 1999 and was a significant increase over the HK$4,026 million expended in 1998-1999 (about 0.32 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product).
During 1999-2000, a total of 4,384 new research grants and contracts worth some HK$1,175 million were obtained by the UGC-funded institutions from all sources. This compared with 4,308 new grants and contracts worth HK$1,111 million for 1998-1999. Funding for new research projects during 1999-2000 totalled HK$1,033 million.
The 1999-2000 research grants brought the total number of research and contract projects in Hong Kong to 14,214 with a total value of HK$4,949 million. This compared with 13,304 grants totalling HK$4,309 million at the end of 1998-1999.

Annual Reports From Institutions on Research Activities
The UGC-funded institutions are required to submit reports on their research activities and on the use of funding from their recurrent grants and other sources for research to the Research Grants Council.
Each institution is required to submit three reports to the Council, on an annual basis. These are:
A descriptive overview of the institution's research activities during an academic year.
A list of on-going research projects funded by sources other than the Council's competitive bid funding.
A list of research publications / output by academic staff published during an academic year.
The main points are summarised in the following sub-sections.

Funding for New Projects
Total new direct funding for academic research projects from all sources amounted to HK$1,032.7 million in 1999-2000, compared with HK$979.4 million in 1998-1999.
Chart 2.1 outlines the proportion of funding for new research projects by source. Detailed figures appear in Appendix A.

Funding For On-Going Projects
Total funding for on-going research projects amounted to HK$4,549.3 million in 1999-2000 compared with HK$4,013.8 million in 1998-1999. Of this figure, approximately 32 per cent came from sources other than the UGC or the Council.
Chart 2.2 outlines the proportion of funding for on-going research projects by source, while more detailed figures are given in Appendix B.
Chart 2.3 shows the distribution of on-going funding for research grants, plus contracts, by source of funding for each of the eight UGC-funded institutions.

Research Output in Hong Kong
The total output of refereed and non-refereed publications in 1999-2000 was 22,226 compared with 20,886 in 1998-1999. Of this figure, 12,085 were refereed compared with 11,376 in 1998-1999.
This is summarised in Chart 2.4, with more detailed figures in Appendix C.

Council Contacts With Other Funding Bodies
The Council maintains regular contact with other bodies that provide funding for research. This good working relationship ensures that applications for grants are cross-checked to avoid unnecessary duplication.
The main research organisations in Hong Kong with which the Council maintains regular contacts are:
The Croucher Foundation.
Hong Kong Jockey Club.
S K Yee Medical Foundation.
Quality Education Fund.
Innovation and Technology Commission
Health Services Research Committee, and Health Care Promotion Fund Committee.
Environment & Conservation Fund Committee.
Overseas bodies and bodies in the Mainland concerned with funding of academic research (such as the German Academic Exchange Service, the National Science Foundation of China and others).