The government's introduction 14 months ago of Hong Kong's first official poverty line was a significant step in helping the poor. From it, the scale and nature of the problem was defined, understanding created so that targeted direction could be given to alleviation measures and a base established from which to judge the effectiveness of efforts taken. Numbers announced this week by Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, the chief secretary and chairwoman of the Commission on Poverty, show the success of the approach with tens of thousands fewer people living hand-to-mouth and the poverty rate falling from 15.2 per cent to 14.5 per cent, an all-time low. It is a welcome achievement for so new a strategy, but these are early days; considerably greater community-wide effort is needed to ensure as many as possible are able to live comfortably.

With 970,000 people still determined to be below the line, the scale of the challenge would seem enormous. It is surprising that in so affluent a city, just under one in seven are living in relative poverty. But the gauge is based on the median monthly household income, not assets, and could overstate the problem, especially among the elderly. More research will ensure a better understanding of poverty and inequality.

Still, the statistics indicate encouraging results from Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying's policy focus on poverty alleviation. Of the measures, the old-age living allowance has been especially effective, benefitting 420,000 elderly. Public housing is also a key strategy, low rents being a proven way of increasing resources for the worse-off in society. But as important as government policies are, they are only a part of making life easier for the poor; legislators, political parties, the business community, non-governmental groups and individuals also have vital roles to play.