As the official WeChat account of the Social Organizations Management Bureau of the Ministry of Civil Affairs reports, since the outbreak of the new coronavirus, Wuhan, Hubei Province and other areas with severe outbreaks urgently need the support of all parties, especially in terms of medical supplies. To this end, China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs has issued the “Announcement on Mobilizing Charitable Forces to Participate in the Prevention and Control of the Pneumonia Epidemic Induced by the Coronavirus in an Orderly and Legal Way” on January 26th, mobilizing social charity forces to support the epidemic prevention and control in an orderly manner. As of 12:00pm on February 8th, in just ten days, Hubei Province had received donations of more than 9.78 billion yuan and more than 41.915 million items, including 422,600 sets of medical protective clothing and 887,500 N95 masks.
In response to the needs of epidemic prevention and control and the concerns of the public, the “Notice” mainly puts forward requirements for strengthening the management and use of charitable donations in five aspects:
1. First, explicitly require charitable organizations and the Red Cross to carry out charitable activities in accordance with the laws and regulations, and strictly follow working principles.
2. Second, explicitly require charitable organizations and the Red Cross to expedite the delivery of donated goods and materials to the front lines of epidemic prevention and control.
3. Third, explicitly require charitable organizations and the Red Cross to publicize the receipt and distribution of donated funds and materials in a timely manner so as to be transparent.
4. Fourth, charitable organizations and the Red Cross are required to make strict checks on the donated materials to prevent damage to the public interest.
5. Fifth, the civil affairs departments are required to publish a phone number to which reports can be made, increase supervision and inspection and investigate and punish violations of laws and regulations.
