The 100-odd major projects proposed in the Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area can be divided into four categories: transport, communication, industrial cooperation, and quality living circle.
The Plan provides guidance for blurring administrative boundaries and enhancing economic interactions with economic, industrial and infrastructure cooperation platforms, according to SONG Ding, Deputy Director of China Urban Economy Expert Committee.
When it comes to major transport projects, the Plan expects the Greater Bay Area (GBA) to rely on a rapid transport network involving mainly high-speed rails, intercity rails and high-grade motorways, as well as port and airport clusters, build regional economic development axes, and form an efficiently connected spatial network of major cities.
The Plan mentions that the GBA should take forward the construction of railway projects including those between Ganzhou and Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Shanwei, Shenzhen and Maoming as well as Cenxi and Luoding, support the construction of the Three-Runway System at the Hong Kong International Airport as well as the reconstruction and expansion of Macao’s airport, carry out reconstruction and expansion works at the airports in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, etc., commence a preliminary study for the construction of a new airport in Guangzhou, and study the development of a batch of feeder airports and general aviation airports. To build a rapid transport network, the GBA should accelerate the construction of the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Bridge and the Second Humen Bridge cross-river link, make better use of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB), and take forward the planning and construction of new boundary crossings such as the Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Control Point, the new Guangdong-Macao border access (Qingmao Boundary Control Point), Hengqin Port (exploring the relocation of the Cotai Frontier Port of Macao) and West Kowloon Station of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link.
Take HZMB for example. Since the bridge officially came into service, the commuting time between Hong Kong and Zhuhai and between Hong Kong and Macao has shrunk to 30 minutes.
Transport infrastructure construction is, according to SONG Ding, a pressing need for the GBA. The projects mentioned in the Plan will bring Hong Kong and Macao closer to the mainland.
Speaking of communication, top priorities are given to smart city clusters, new smart city pilot demonstration, and a national big data integrated pilot zone in the Pearl River Delta (PRD).
As early as the end of 2017, the Hong Kong Government has issued the Smart City Blueprint with development plans for the next five years. The blueprint lists the policies and measures in six categories, including a Faster Payment System, a mobile app which integrates existing applications (HKeTransport, HKeRouting and eTraffic News), gradual replacement of coal-fired electricity generation with natural gas and non-fossil fuel sources, and introduction of virtual banking as another model of service delivery.
The Plan also expects the GBA to expand the bandwidth capacity of broadband Internet among Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao, promote the development of wireless broadband systems in the PRD city cluster, and achieve full coverage of free high-speed wireless LAN in hotspots and along main transport routes within the GBA.
Owing to Huawei’s presence, the GBA promises to be the world’s first bay area to enter into the 5G era, which will go a long way for its future ICT development, said SONG Ding.
As far as industrial cooperation goes, the Plan expects the GBA to develop an international innovation and technology hub while nurturing and strengthening strategic emerging industries. Specifically, the GBA should support the development of major carriers for innovation such as the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park and the Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City, the innovation and technology base in Qingsheng of Nansha, and the TCM Science and Technology Industrial Park of Cooperation between Guangdong and Macao in Hengqin; support the development of the five Hong Kong R&D Centers respectively for Logistics and Supply Chain MultiTech, Textiles and Apparel, ICT, Automotive Parts and Accessory Systems, and Nano and Advanced Materials, as well as the development of the Hong Kong Science Park and the Hong Kong Cyberport; support the setting up of a platform for developing the TCM science and technology industries in Macao; and take forward the development of Partner State Key Laboratories in Hong Kong and Macao.
The GBA should also accelerate the development of major platforms such as Qianhai of Shenzhen, Nansha of Guangzhou and Hengqin of Zhuhai, fully leverage their experimental and demonstration functions in deepening reform, expanding the scope of opening up and fostering cooperation, expand the development potential of Hong Kong and Macao, promote collaboration in public services, and spearhead comprehensive cooperation among Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao.
In the past, due to administrative division, cities in the GBA had less interaction and, therefore, less synergy. Led by the State, substantial industrial cooperation in the GBA will start between Hong Kong and Macao, and later expand to Guangdong, said SONG Ding.
PENG, Vice President of Guangdong System Reform Research Society, noted that the major projects would provide impetus for the faltering economy. Based on a multi-level mechanism for coordinated development, cities in the GBA should seize the day to reorient and rebalance themselves, creating a win-win situation through coopetition.
To build a quality living circle for living, working and travelling, the Plan has proposed a number of major projects covering ecological conservation, development of an education and talents hub, joint development of a cultured bay area, expansion of the scope for employment and entrepreneurship, shaping of a healthy bay area, and fostering of cooperation in social security and social governance.
As with the expansion of the scope for employment and entrepreneurship, for instance, the Plan expects the GBA to take forward the development of youth entrepreneurship and employment bases for Hong Kong and Macao, such as the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Youth Innovation Entrepreneurship Base, the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Youth Innovation and Entrepreneur Hub, the Nansha Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao (International) Youth Entrepreneur Hub, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao youth innovation and entrepreneurial cooperation platform in Zhongshan, the innovation and entrepreneurial bases for overseas Chinese in Jiangmen and Zengcheng, the Hong Kong-Macao youth innovation and entrepreneurial base in Dongguan Eco-Industrial Park at Songshan Lake, and the Hong Kong-Macao youth entrepreneurial base in Zhongkai of Huizhou.
If all goes to the Plan, the projects, after completion, will expand the scope and enhance the functions of service. Qianhai will be built into a “core incubator for innovative industries”, and Hong Kong a “cluster of leading industries”. The deepening of cooperation between Shenzhen and Hong Kong will further establish Qianhai as a youth entrepreneurship and employment platform for Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao.
The importance of the projects is four-fold, according to PENG Peng: First, development investment is conducive to economic integration; second, coordinated laws and policies lead to a better business environment; third, the international practice of integrating three tariff systems and three legal systems within the “One Country, Two Systems” framework makes the GBA an experimental zone of the Belt and Road Initiative; fourth, new development opportunities are popping up in this area.
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