Nim Shu Wan – revival of an abandoned land

Nim Shu Wan village on Lantau Island was once abandoned in the 1920s due to disease and insufficient farmland. It was only in the 1950s, when the land was settled again by the refugees, that the village was able to embark on the road to prosperity in the 1970s.

The lack of arable land and quality soil raised concerns for KAAA who, in 1955, devised a development plan in cooperation with Nim Shu Wan villagers. The village was issued with cement to construct seawalls and a pier to protect vegetation from sea damage and improve the transportation of produce and farming necessities respectively.

Villagers established new land by terracing the hillsides. Farmland subsequently increased by three fold in 17 years.

KAAA staff regularly visited Nim Shu Wan villagers, and were always on hand to help. Over 10 years since the village received aid, monthly income per head some from $32 to $90, population surged from 60 to nearly 300.

Land development

With the help of KAAA, fourteen Ho Man Tin squatter families affected by urban development in 1951-52 were relocated to today’s Shun Lee Estate area as pig raisers and vegetable farmers.

To further assist the families to exploit the hillside above their land, KAAA offered 25% of the funds needed, transportation of 56 lorries of cow manure from the Diamond Hill dairy farm, and free cement for construction. The remaining of the required funds was lent to the villagers.

The villagers repaid the loan on time. Some families made a decent income. In the late 1960s, the village was moved to give way to public housing.

Disaster relief

Chief disasters affecting local farmers in Hong Kong were usually typhoons for fires. KAAA gave them immediate assistance and support.

Ka Wor Lei Project, Tuen Mun
A huge fire broke out in a squatter area on Castle Peak Road in January 1963. The fire engulfed homes of nineteen squatter families. KAAA relocated victims to a site close to their original homes, and gave them new houses, chickens feed and a fresh start. The village soon thrived and was reputed as a successful chicken raising community.