Liu Guangyuan, head of the Commissioner's Office of China’s Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong SAR, gives a speech in Hong Kong on Sunday at the ceremony marking the beginning of his delegation's visit to four mainland cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. (PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)
A high-level delegation comprising representatives of Hong Kong-based foreign organizations, the city’s business leaders, and government officials began a five-day trip on Sunday to four mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to examine the region’s latest developments and to seek opportunities.
The delegation will visit Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Zhuhai and Dongguan, meet with local officials, and visit iconic enterprises such as BYD, iFlytek and Gree to get a better understanding of the Greater Bay Area’s development plans, favorable policies, and investment and entrepreneurship prospects. The group will return to Hong Kong on Thursday.
The tour was organized by the Commissioner’s Office of China’s Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong SAR, and is headed by office Commissioner Liu Guangyuan. Accompanying him are over 100 representatives of commercial chambers, international corporations and financial institutions and foreign diplomatic missions. Algernon Yau Ying-wah, secretary for commerce and economic development, also is part of the delegation.
Speaking at the trip’s launch ceremony on Sunday, Liu said the development of the Greater Bay Area, which is promoted by President Xi Jinping, has led the pace of China’s reform and opening-up and lured many professionals and dedicated many resources to the region.
According to official data, the GDP of the nine mainland cities in the GBA exceeded 10.46 trillion yuan ($1.52 billion) in 2022, an increase of over 4 percent year-on-year. At the Global Investment Promotion Conference of the Greater Bay Area at the end of last year, 853 cooperation projects were concluded with total investments of 2.5 trillion yuan.
The development of the Greater Bay Area, which is promoted by President Xi Jinping, has led the pace of China’s reform and opening-up and lured many professionals and dedicated many resources to the region
Because many foreign diplomatic and business leaders in Hong Kong have shown a keen interest in the GBA’s development, the Commissioner’s Office decided to organize the trip soon after the full resumption of cross-border travel between the special administrative region and the Chinese mainland. Liu said.
In the next few days, the delegates will be briefed about the achievements of three GBA cooperation platforms of Qianhai, Nansha and Hengqin, and also witness the infrastructure connectivity created by the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge.
They will also reach out to a series of leading technology firms in the cluster, such as new-energy vehicle bellwether BYD, Internet giant Tencent, Gree Electric Appliances, and Jinko Power Technology. The delegation will also visit the South China artificial intelligence research institute of iFlytek, a powerhouse in voice recognition; and the China Spallation Neutron Source — a super-microscope constructed jointly by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Guangdong province.
During the visit, top government officials of Guangdong and the four Guangdong cities will communicate with the delegation and hold promotional events for foreign investors to help them become apprised of the GBA’s favorable policies and investment potential, to help them seize the rich development opportunities in China’s high-quality opening-up.
Liu said that Hong Kong has ushered in a new stage of stability and prosperity, and that the foundation of “one country” has become more solid while the advantages of “two systems” are more prominent.
Hong Kong is now fully integrating itself into the national development, during which the GBA will add momentum and set a big stage for Hong Kong to achieve greater development, he added.
The Commissioner’s Office will provide more platforms for foreign consulates and business communities for them to share more benefits from the GBA and all of China through the Hong Kong SAR, Liu said.