The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) project is a national strategy by the Chinese government to link nine cities in the Guangdong Pearl River Delta Economic Zone (PRD) with Hong Kong and Macao. The GBA aims to be a/an:
Innovation will form the foundation of GBA’s economy and development model. To develop the GBA into an International Technology Innovation Centre, there are plans to build a Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Macao Technology Innovation Corridor, which will explore policy initiatives on cross border movement of talents, capital, information and technologies.
Hong Kong, Macao, Guangzhou and Shenzhen have been designated the core cities of the GBA. Specifically, Hong Kong will be the international finance, navigation and trade centre, as well as a transport hub for the GBA; Macao will be an international tourism city and a platform for enhanced trade and investments with Portuguese-speaking countries; Guangzhou will take on a leading role as the regional administrative centre; while Shenzhen will spearhead innovation development and leverage its unique status as a Special Economic Zone to experiment with new reforms.
Of the remaining PRD cities, Zhuhai, Foshan, Zhongshan and Dongguan are in the second tier, identified to develop strengths in high-tech sectors such as advanced manufacturing, as these four cities bordering the first tier cities have traditional strengths in the manufacturing industries. In addition, Guangzhou and Foshan; Macao and Zhuhai; and Hong Kong and Shenzhen, have been paired as regional sub-clusters to accelerate integration and development of the GBA.
Source: Guangdong Statistical Bureau
Iconic Singapore projects in Guangdong include:
Source: Census and Statistics Department, HKSAR and Yearbook of Statistics of Macao 2018
Singapore projects in Hong Kong and Macao include:
Fujian’s economic hub is made up of the four cities of Fuzhou (provincial capital), Xiamen, Quanzhou, and Zhangzhou. Collectively, they account for nearly 70% of the province’s GDP. Fujian enjoyed relatively strong economic growth in the last five years, and was China’s 10th largest provincial economy in 2018.
To drive further economic growth, Fujian aims to promote industrial restructuring and upgrading through adopting innovation and entrepreneurship, promoting the clustering of high-end industries, and developing modern services. Emphasis will also be placed on the integration of urban and rural development to develop Fujian as a sustainable and liveable place through environmental protection and digitisation of information. Fujian will also leverage the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI) to strengthen its cooperation with Guangdong, Zhejiang and other neighbouring provinces, as well as external markets such as Taiwan. This is to strengthen its positioning in the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.
Fujian’s Free Trade Zone (FTZ), established in 2015, will see a concentration of some of these developments. The Fujian FTZ comprises the following areas, each with its own focus areas:
Source: Fujian Statistical Bureau
Singapore projects in Fujian include:
Hainan, a tropical island off China’s south coast, was designated as a province and Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in 1988. Today, the services industry is the most significant contributor to Hainan’s GDP, accounting for more than half of the economy’s output. Agriculture and tourism are its key sectors.
Hainan is set to transform into an island-wide pilot FTZ and subsequently, a Free Trade Port (FTP). As China’s first and only FTP, Hainan will be a pilot zone for further opening up, with reforms relating to the free movement of goods, capital and people expected. Its services sectors, in particular, are set to receive a boost from the reforms.
Source: Hainan Government Official Website
Singapore projects in Hainan include: