More than 40 years of reform and opening up, Nearly 25 years after Hong Kong's return to the motherland, the Shenzhen side is no longer the fishing village town of the year, and the high-rise buildings have been lined up one after another. High-speed rail, ports, Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, more and more land ports... Traveling between the two banks of the Shenzhen River has become easier, and the exchange of people and goods has become more frequent. A Shenzhen river has witnessed the vicissitudes of Hong Kong and Shenzhen over the past few decades, and has also written a new chapter in the integration of the two places in the new era.
Now the HKSAR Government has finally made up its mind to plan the northern metropolitan area with a strategic thinking that crosses the administrative boundaries between Hong Kong and Shenzhen, pointing Hong Kong's future development to the north. This seemingly explosive strategic deployment has actually been brewing for at least 30 years in the mainland and Hong Kong.
Schematic diagram of the spatial concept of "Twin Cities and Three Circles"
Since the early 1990s, the mainland has begun to carry out research on cooperation between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, especially on the issue of regional cooperation on both sides of the Shenzhen River, but before and after the return of Hong Kong in 1997, the cooperation proposal of "one river and two sides of the river" did not receive a positive response from the Hong Kong side. In 2008, former Hong Kong Chief Executive Tsang Yam-kuen put forward the idea of "jointly building a Hong Kong-Shenzhen metropolis" in his policy address, further weakening the strict separation of the Hong Kong-Shenzhen border, and at the same time, Hong Kong and Shenzhen also began to set up special teams to study and coordinate land planning and development on both sides of the Shenzhen River. Planning for the Loop is hotly debated. After nearly a decade of consultation and communication, in 2017, the governments of Shenzhen and Hong Kong finally signed the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation on Promoting the Common Development of the Lok Ma Chau Loop. With the promulgation of the Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the cooperation and development of the two places has accelerated in recent years.
In the next 20 years, through the improvement of infrastructure and transportation and the creation of technology industry space, the coordinated development of the two places, Hong Kong and Shenzhen have the opportunity to further release their potential, form a new Hong Kong-Shenzhen metropolitan area, and drive Hong Kong's economy to take off again.
Xintian Science and Technology City continues and undertakes the central science and technology policy of benefiting Hong Kong
High-tech innovation fields such as artificial intelligence and life and health are the key contents of the future national development, and the central government has given high hopes for the development of science and technology in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. In 2017, the shenzhen and Hong Kong governments' planning for the Loop fell into the field of scientific and technological innovation. The Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, released in 2019, also proposes to support Hong Kong and Shenzhen to jointly build a cooperation zone, establish an international business environment conducive to innovation in the technology industry, and realize the convenient and effective flow of innovation elements. The 14th Five-Year Plan Outline released earlier this year also proposes to support Hong Kong in building an international innovation and technology hub, complement the advantages of the mainland, and include the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Loop as one of the four major cooperation platforms of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao, and a series of actions reflect that both sides of the Shenzhen River shoulder the responsibility of science and technology development.
Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park (under construction)
One of the key actions of the northern metropolitan area is to build a "Xintian Science and Technology City" in the north of the New Territories, continuing the previous policy path. Covering an area of 1,100 hectares, the "Xintian Science and Technology City" has greatly expanded the capacity of the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park, which originally used about 87 hectares. This land is no longer limited to the establishment of key I&T research cooperation bases and science and technology innovation enterprises, but will be built into a comprehensive community for the work and life of science and technology talents, bringing a large number of I&T positions, thereby accumulating innovative capital and atmosphere. In order to make personnel exchanges between the two places more convenient, the SAR Government will also make full use of passenger and freight traffic at Lok Ma Chau, The New Huanggang Port and the Fu Lin Small Port to arrange "one place, two inspections".
There is a fundamental difference between "Xintian Science and Technology City" and all the "Science and Technology City" and "Cyberport" projects in Hong Kong in the past, which are projects for Hong Kong to integrate into the new national development pattern and realize the 14th Five-Year Plan. With the support of the central government's policies and the clear goals set out in the 14th Five-Year Plan outline - the country's innovative development has entered a new stage, Hong Kong must dock with the country's science and technology development strategy and major scientific and technological tasks. It is believed that in connection with the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the development of major industries, giving full play to Hong Kong's scientific and technological advantages and transforming them into tangible output, the "Science and Technology City" project will provide a steady stream of impetus for subsequent industrial development.
Hong Kong itself has a number of top universities in the world and a group of high-level scientists, relying on several universities in Hong Kong, the state has also established 16 state key laboratories and 6 national engineering technology research centers in Hong Kong in recent years.
The central government has been introducing the Huigang science and technology policy for many years, and the policy support received by the current government includes that Hong Kong universities and scientific research institutions have been allowed to apply for the central financial science and technology plan projects, the mainland has introduced supporting policies to facilitate the flow of innovation elements, relaxed the restrictions on the transit of human genetic resources in Hong Kong, and the research institutions under the Chinese Academy of Sciences have set up R&D centers in the "InnoHK Innovation Hong Kong R&D Platform", and established the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Academician Alliance.
Li Xiao, a member of the "14th Five-Year Plan Publicity Group" and deputy director of the China Science and Technology Exchange Center of the Ministry of Science and Technology, once said that the high density of innovation resources, the high level of innovative achievements, the high degree of internationalization of scientific research activities, coupled with Hong Kong's advantages in basic research, frontier exploration and original innovation, will help the sustainable development of Hong Kong's future scientific and technological innovation.
The new center of the future international city: Flood Bridge + Qianhai
In addition to the field of science and technology, the Outline of the 14th Five-Year Plan also proposes to support Hong Kong in building an Asia-Pacific international legal and dispute resolution service center, a regional intellectual property trade center, and support the development of Hong Kong's service industry in the direction of high-end and high value-added. The Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area also clearly proposes to optimize and enhance the functions of the Shenzhen Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone (Qianhai Cooperation Zone). Link Hong Kong to build an open and innovative industrial system and accelerate its move towards the high end of the global value chain. At the same time, it is necessary to strengthen cooperation in legal affairs between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, strengthen the efficient connection between Qianhai and Hong Kong infrastructure, and build a new international city center.
Schematic map of the expansion of the Qianhai Cooperation Zone
In September this year, the State Council announced the "Plan for Comprehensively Deepening the Reform and Opening-up of the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone", which greatly expanded the scope of the original Qianhai Cooperation Zone, including the Shekou Block of the China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone, the Shenzhen Airport in Bao'an District and the Convention and Exhibition New City. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the HKSAR Government intends to deepen its high-end economic cooperation with Qianhai in the financial and professional services, modern logistics and technology services, so as to enhance the quality and scale of Hong Kong's modern service industry. The Area around Hongguangqiao/Xiacun is basically from scratch, with greater plasticity, coupled with the Qianhai area adjacent to the newly expanded area, which can be combined with the development of high-end industries such as modern service industries. After the completion of the railway connection between the Flood Bridge and Qianhai, it has actually made the Qianhai Cooperation Zone more effective, attracting more high-end enterprises exploring the Shenzhen and Greater Bay Area markets to enter the New Territories North Business District and creating more new economic jobs.
Ecological conservation is no longer an excuse for non-development
The development of the New Territories North has been discussed in Hong Kong for many years, but it has been difficult to make substantial progress for many years due to political rab, and one of the frequently mentioned difficulties is "ecological conservation". Now, as Hong Kong's political situation moves toward stability, the SAR government has also begun to plan for Hong Kong's future in the long run. The Chief Secretary for Administration of the HKSAR Government, Mr Lee Ka-chiu, pointed out in his blog that the vision set out in the Policy Address is forward-looking - the "Northern Metropolitan Area" development strategy, opening up housing, developing technology, commerce, tourism and employment, which is a dynamic metropolitan area that is both developed and nurtured.
Mai Po Nature Reserve
Yuen Long and The Northern District have a rich and diverse ecological environment that nurtures many species. But for decades, land management in the region has been unsatisfactory, wasting valuable development potential. The Northern Economic Belt proposed in Hong Kong 2030+ is actually included in the Northern Metropolitan Area, which is the most important area for the deepening integration of Hong Kong and Shenzhen. Many farmlands and fish ponds have not yet been developed, and whether they have ecological conservation value has always been one of the focal points of public controversy in urban construction.
The state advocates the development goals of "building an ecological civilization" and "building a beautiful countryside". Of the ten key action projects in the Northern Metropolitan Area Development Strategy, two are closely related to ecological protection. This includes strengthening the restoration of fish ponds and wetlands, the construction of ecological protection parks and the integration of recreational/tourist spaces with ecological conservation. The planning of the Dapeng Bay/Yinzhoutang Eco-Recreation Tourism Circle enables Hong Kong and Shenzhen to deepen cooperation in the protection of the ecological environment and the management of protected areas in the east, while creating sustainable ecological recreation/tourism facilities and projects to enrich the leisure life of residents of the two places.
Ecological conservation is no longer an excuse for non-development, the blueprint drawn in the northern metropolitan area is exciting, and Zhang Keke, a think tank of the Shenzhen Municipal Government, commented that the "Development Strategy" is "making up for the dead sheep and it is not too late", and Hong Kong has been waiting for this moment for thirty years. After the completion of the new Legislative Council and the election of the chief executive, the construction of the northern metropolitan area will also become their main task and challenge. Young people will see Hong Kong rejuvenated for the next three decades.
[Reporter] Zhang Shiyu
【Planner】 Wang Yongxing
【Author】 Wang Yongxing
Hong Kong today
Source: South+ - Create more value