About this Event
About this event
Under the watchful gaze of the world, the ceasefire in Iran announced by Trump two weeks ago ends tomorrow (April 22). The Middle East remains engulfed in war, with little hope for peace anytime near. To the east of Iran lies Afghanistan – another Islamic nation that has been ravaged by war and plunged into a deep humanitarian crisis. Yet little about Afghanistan has been covered in international news that focus primarily on oil pricing.
Since the Taliban ended a 20-year war and returned to power in 2021, Afghanistan's economy has collapsed and its people are struggling to survive. The Taliban regime has severely curtailed women's freedoms, banning them from secondary and higher education, prohibiting them from working in public institutions, and forbidding them from travelling without a male relative — effectively erasing women from public life altogether. According to UN reports, as of 2025, over 14 million women are in need of protection and assistance, and over 22 million people depend on humanitarian aid to survive.
In face of these immense challenges, a Hong Kong-based charitable organisation — CEDAR Fund — has been supporting civilian needs through various ministries over the past years. CEDAR Fund is an independent relief and development organisation founded in 1991. Upholding the principle of helping the poor ‘From church, Through church’, CEDAR Fund carries out relief and development projects in areas of need around the world.
Dr. Winnie Fung, CEDAR Fund’s Chief Executive and development economist, travelled to Afghanistan to visit local partners earlier this year. She gained first-hand understanding of the relief initiatives on the ground and listened to the voices of civilians struggling against adversity. In the 3rd event of ISV Lab’s Transcending Boundaries series, Dr. Fung will share her experience and observations, as well as her journey in integral mission and transformational development.
全球目光都在注視著伊朗，特朗普兩週前宣布的停戰將於明天（4月22日）結束，中東地區戰雲密布，受災人民在黑暗中仍未見和平的曙光。在伊朗東鄰的阿富汗，是另一個伊斯蘭國度，在伊朗爆發戰爭的同時也同樣受戰火蹂躪，且深陷人道危機，但在著眼於油價的世界新聞中卻不見身影。
自2021年結束20年戰火、塔利班重新執政以來，阿富汗經濟崩潰、民不聊生，塔利班政權更嚴重剝削女性自由，包括禁止女性接受中學及高等教育、禁止於公營機構就業、禁止在沒有男性親屬陪同下出行，將女性禁絕於公共空間。根據聯合國的報告，截至2025年，逾1400萬名女性需要保護及援助，逾2200萬名人民需要倚靠援助度日，人道危機極度嚴峻。
面對重重挑戰，一家建基於香港的慈善機構--施達基金會--於過去數年，一直透過推行不同事工，支援平民需要。施達基金會是一間不分宗派的救援及發展機構，自1991年成立至今，持守「藉教會、經教會、扶貧濟困」原則，在全球各地有需要的地區推行救援及發展項目，使貧窮人得溫飽，更讓他們活出上主賜予人的尊嚴。
本年初，施達總幹事、發展經濟學家馮韻兒博士前赴阿富汗，探訪當地夥伴，實地了解事工推行情況，並傾聽在困境中掙扎的平民心聲。馮博士將擔任ISV Lab「邊界之上」系列第三場活動的主講嘉賓，分享所見所聞，以及她參與整全使命和轉型發展的經歷。
About the speaker
Dr. Winnie Fung is the Chief Executive of CEDAR Fund. She is a development economist with a PhD in Business Economics from Harvard University and a MA in Biblical Studies from Wheaton College. Her expertise is in food security, famine and malnutrition, smallholder farming and agricultural policies, as well as anti-human trafficking. Her passion lies in poverty alleviation, integral mission, and faith-based relief and development. She has been involved in integral mission and transformational development for more than 15 years.
Dr. Fung’s work has brought her to various parts of the world. She has written and published on famine in China, malaria eradication in India, and anti-human trafficking efforts and business-as-mission initiatives in South Asia. She has served as a consultant for the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Human Development Report Office (HDRO). She has travelled to and supervised projects in countries including Nicaragua, Peru, Cambodia, and the Philippines, on issues pertaining to microfinance, fair trade, food security, and gender-based violence.
Prior to joining CEDAR, Dr. Fung was an Associate Professor of Economics at Wheaton College and Academic Head at Lumina College.
馮韻兒博士現任施達基金會總幹事。她是一位發展經濟學家，是哈佛大學商業經濟學博士和惠頓大學聖經研究碩士。她的研究包括糧食安全和饑荒、小農耕作和農業政策，以及反人口販賣。她熱衷於扶貧、推動整全使命及以信仰為本的人道救援與社區發展。她參與整全使命和轉型發展已超過15 年。
馮博士曾於不同國家及地區進行研究工作。她曾就中國饑荒、印度瘧疾控制、南亞反人口販賣事工和營商宣教進行研究及發表學術文章。她曾於聯合國開發計劃署人類發展報告辦公室擔任顧問。她曾前往尼加拉瓜、秘魯、柬埔寨和菲律賓等國家，督導有關微型金融、公平貿易、糧食安全和性別暴力等議題的項目。
任職施達基金會總幹事之前，她於美國惠頓大學擔任副教授和香港恩光書院擔任教務長。
About CEDAR Fund
Established in 1991, CEDAR Fund is an independent Christian relief and development organisation in Hong Kong. It was founded in response to a tragic story heard by a founding member—the poor Haitians were suffering from hunger. They had to make mud cakes (by mixing mud, water, and salt, kneading them into cakes, and drying them under the scorching sun) to prevent starvation. He believed that Christians must fulfil the mission of loving the poor as commanded by the Lord, so he united with other Christians to establish CEDAR Fund.
CEDAR Fund is a Christian charity carrying out relief and development projects, upholding the principle of helping the poor ‘From church, Through church’. Together with Christians around the world, it strives to build a just and compassionate world in Christ.
施達基金會於1991年成立，是一間建基香港、不分宗派的基督教救援及發展機構。機構的誕生，是源於當年一位創會成員聽到海地貧窮人由於糧食嚴重缺乏，而自製泥餅（用泥加水和鹽等，搓成餅狀再經烈日曝曬而成）來充饑的慘況，有感基督徒必須實踐上主所吩咐愛貧窮人的使命，便聯合同道，成立施達基金會。
施達基金會是一間基督教慈善機構，推行救援及發展項目，持守「藉教會、經教會、扶貧濟困」原則，與全球基督徒攜手，在基督裏共建公義仁愛的世界。
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
HKMA Wanchai (Room 201), 2/F Pico Tower, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
HKD 0.00
