Greater Bay Area

As the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover draws near, Hong Konger Thomas Chan reflects on the changes that have taken place over the last few years and the real and pressing issue of residents, especially the young, drifting away. Most are seeking better prospects abroad in a wry turn of events from a time when the city was viewed as the land of opportunity. Now, amid dreary skies and Telegram alerts announcing yet another citizen-police chase, the city stands forlorn as it watches its people leave.

The Hengqin Plan and Qianhai Plan released by the Chinese central government aim to deepen economic cooperation and promote cross-border integration within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA). The Plans will involve greater integration of Hong Kong and Macau with the mainland. While Macau has always embraced this trajectory and the Hengqin Plan could bring greater dynamism to the SAR, Hong Kong’s fears of “mainlandisation” and the territorial instincts of mainland cities may present some obstacles to the Qianhai Plan. EAI academic Yu Hong tells us more.

Over the past two years, the nine cities (Dongguan, Foshan, Guangzhou, Huizhou, Jiangmen, Shenzhen, Zhaoqing, Zhongshan and Zhuhai) and two special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau) of the Greater Bay Area (GBA) have ramped up efforts and combined resources to build a credible GBA Chinese film industry. The authorities aim to leverage the experience and expertise of the Hong Kong film and television industry in its heyday in creating a new paradigm for future Chinese movies. Indeed, many Hong Kong directors such as Tsui Hark have joined the ranks of those who are making this a reality. Zaobao journalist Zeng Shi notes that the GBA has policy support and capital, but can this nascent film industry make good productions and develop a strong identity of its own?

Zaobao correspondent Yu Zeyuan notes the growing gap between northern and southern China in terms of economic and population growth, as businesses and people become more concentrated in the south. How will the central government tackle this imbalance?

While the Yangtze River Delta region comprising Shanghai and parts of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui has been seeing strong economic development, it could be more productive. Provinces with their own targets to meet have few incentives for regional integration, leaving the region as a whole less competitive. How can policies or market mechanisms be implemented to encourage more collaboration between local governments?

While the UK imports a high volume of goods from China, it exports many sought-after services in areas including finance, law and accounting. Its latest niche is its expansion into education, targeting the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area.

Even as China embarks on various infrastructure projects, how many of these projects are actually useful, or bring real benefits to the people they are supposed to serve? Are all of these projects truly worth the money and effort invested? Commentator David Ng takes a closer look at a "white elephant" tram system in the Greater Bay Area and considers the issues involved.

Shenzhen has grown rapidly over the past 40 years, such that its GDP reached a massive 2.7 trillion RMB in 2019. Just this month, the Chinese government released a five-year plan to make Shenzhen a “pilot demonstration area for socialism with Chinese characteristics”. Amid plans for reforms and new initiatives, EAI academic Yu Hong asks: How much autonomy will Shenzhen have, and what challenges will it face?

Offshore duty-free policy, lower rentals and proximity to mainland China — will the development of Hainan free trade port impact Hong Kong’s functions and status? Zaobao correspondent Meng Dandan seeks experts’ views for a clearer picture.