Hong Kong Unveils "Bay Integration Plan" and Blueprint for Northern Metropolis Development

The much-anticipated construction of the Northern Metropolis in Hong Kong has revealed new developments, with the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government disclosing a clear "roadmap" for the first time.

On October 16th, Chief Executive John Lee of the HKSAR delivered the "2024 Policy Address" to the Legislative Council, in which the seventh section explicitly stated: promoting the development engine of the Northern Metropolis and deepening cooperation in the Greater Bay Area. The content includes "promoting the construction of the Northern Metropolis," "promoting the development of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Park at Lok Ma Chau," and "leveraging the advantages of the Greater Bay Area for mutual expansion," demonstrating a determination to further integrate into the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and inject new momentum into Hong Kong's development.

In the report, Lee stated that the Northern Metropolis (North Metropolis) is a new engine for Hong Kong's economic development. The government will accelerate the implementation of projects related to economic and housing development within the North Metropolis while maintaining the soundness of public finances. Over the next five years, approximately 60,000 housing units will be completed and occupied, including about 10 new public housing estates; the first batch of land for the San Tin Technology City will be launched; and the new Huanggang Port building implementing "one location, two inspections" will be completed.

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In the second five-year period, the number of newly completed housing units will increase by about 150,000; there will be over 10 million square meters of total floor area for economic use; the first government co-location office building in North District will be completed and put into use; the North District Hospital will complete its expansion and begin service; in terms of transportation infrastructure, the main line of the North Ring Expressway will be completed in 2034, and the North Metropolis Highway (San Tin section) is expected to open in 2036.

After completing the aforementioned construction plan, "it will significantly boost economic development, promote research and development of the technology industry, provide a better living environment, help attract and retain talent, and enhance the quality of life for citizens, benefiting the public and adding happiness," said Lee.

The Northern Metropolis includes the two local administrative districts of Yuen Long and North District in the HKSAR, the newly developed towns of Tin Shui Wai, Yuen Long, and Fanling/Sheung Shui and their adjacent rural areas, as well as six new development areas and development hubs at different planning and construction stages, covering an area of about 300 square kilometers. According to the "Northern Metropolis Action Agenda" published by the HKSAR government on October 30, 2023, this area adjacent to Shenzhen will be the most active region for urban construction and population growth in Hong Kong over the next 20 years.

The Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone at Lok Ma Chau, with a total area of about 3.89 square kilometers, is located in the cross-border area in the central and southern part of Shenzhen and Hong Kong, including the Shenzhen and Hong Kong parks, and is a major cooperation platform in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area planned and constructed during the "14th Five-Year Plan." The government hopes to develop the Hong Kong park into a world-class industry-academia-research platform and build an internationally competitive industry pilot transformation base. To this end, Lee revealed that he has established the "Lok Ma Chau Area Shenzhen-Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Park Steering Committee," chaired by himself, to lead the formulation of the overall strategy, plan, and layout of the Hong Kong park.

"The 'Hong Kong Park Development Outline of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone at Lok Ma Chau' will be released this year, proposing innovative policies to promote the flow of personnel, materials, funds, and data between the parks in Hong Kong and Shenzhen, and to make the cooperation zone an important source of new quality productive forces for the country," said Lee.

Currently, the construction of the Hong Kong park is accelerating and increasing in volume, and the first batch of tenants from the park's pillar industries, including life and health technology, artificial intelligence, and data science, will start to move in next year. Just last week, at the Hong Kong Science Park Shenzhen Park located within the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone at Lok Ma Chau, reporters from First Financial witnessed the official opening of ASTRI Technology Research (Shenzhen) Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute, which is the largest applied science research institution and the largest R&D center in Hong Kong.

Lee said that Hong Kong has always been an active participant, promoter, and beneficiary in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. To strengthen top-level planning and supervision, he led the establishment of the "Integration into the National Development Blueprint Steering Group," leading the HKSAR government and all sectors to more actively promote the integrated development of Hong Kong with mainland China, especially with the mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area. In the future, it will continue to promote the construction of the Greater Bay Area through building a higher level of interconnectivity, promoting policy innovation and breakthroughs, jointly building broader rules connection and mechanism docking, and accelerating the coordinated development of innovation and industry.The specific ideas for cooperation include: combining mainland land resources with Hong Kong's air transport advantages to expand the logistics industry circle, mainly by jointly building the Hong Kong International Airport Dongguan Airport Center with the Dongguan Municipal Government; promoting the collaboration of the Greater Bay Area airport group to expand the business network, mainly by advancing international freight business with Zhuhai City; cooperating with Guangdong and Macao to strengthen the recognition mechanism for professional qualifications; revitalizing capital circulation and jointly investing in the Greater Bay Area, with Hong Kong Investment Management Limited actively exploring cooperation opportunities with relevant mainland institutions.

In addition, according to the policy report, Hong Kong also hopes to promote cross-border services and data circulation with other cities in the Greater Bay Area to further facilitate people and benefit enterprises; strengthen medical collaboration in the Greater Bay Area, including expanding the "Elderly Medical Voucher Greater Bay Area Pilot Program" to nine mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area; strengthen legal cooperation; jointly cultivate talents, expand the development space for youth, encourage Hong Kong universities to establish campuses in the Greater Bay Area, and encourage Hong Kong youth to work in the Greater Bay Area.