The government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region approved more relief fund on Tuesday to help flood-affected victims of the Chinese mainland, raising the city's flood relief to the mainland during summer to 5 million HK dollars (US$644,000).

The new grant of 2 million HK dollars (about US$258,000) from the Disaster Relief Fund will be earmarked on emergency relief to flood victims in Guangxi, Hunan and Jiangxi in the southern and central parts of China.

At the advice of the Disaster Relief Fund Advisory Committee, the government designated the Hong Kong Red Cross to supervise the use of the relief fund.

The committee hoped that the new allocation would help provide relief to flood victims in southern or central China.

To ensure that the money will be used for the designated purposes, the committee will ask the Hong Kong Red Cross to submit an evaluation report and an audited account on the use of the grant after the relief project has been completed.

Established in Hong Kong in 1993, the Disaster Relief Fund was recognized for its emergency disaster relief in places outside Hong Kong.

(Xinhua News Agency August 2, 2006)