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Thursday, November 23, 2017, 01:37
Visiting delegation impressed by Greater Bay Area
By Willa Wu
Thursday, November 23, 2017, 01:37 By Willa Wu

ZHUHAI - A visiting delegation led by the central government’s top foreign affairs official in Hong Kong concluded its three-day visit to cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area on Wednesday - saying they were "impressed" by developments on the Chinese mainland.

The delegation was comprised of foreign consuls and representatives from overseas commerce chambers based in the special administrative region. The delegation said that the trip provided inspiration about exploring business opportunities in the Greater Bay Area. 

Xie Feng, commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Hong Kong SAR, led the delegation which visited Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Zhuhai.

Destinations included cutting-edge technology companies in Shenzhen, a top national think tank in Guangzhou and the Hengqin free trade zone in Zhuhai. The delegation also visited the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, which is currently in its final stage of construction.

The trip was also the first one organized by the commissioner after the 19th Communist Party of China National Congress.

Xie emphasized on the last day of the visit that it had been very fruitful. It had offered first-hand knowledge of what is happening in the bay area, he explained. The delegation members had also benefited from an exchange of ideas with mainland authorities. 

He noted that the trip had added substance to the concept of a three-way cooperation mechanism among the mainland, Hong Kong and overseas firms. Xie has actively promoted this idea since August. 

Tengku Sirajuzzaman, consul general of consulate general of Malaysia in Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR, said he hardly recognized today’s Guangzhou. He said the city had developed massively from 17 years ago when he first visited it.

He noted that the rule of law was emphasized at the 19th CPC congress. The consul general said the mainland’s respect for the rule of law, as well the bay area’s booming development, would encourage more Malaysian companies to establish businesses there. 

Yuh Pok-keun, acting consul general of the consulate general of the Republic of Korea, said the visit to two high-tech companies in Shenzhen had inspired him to explore common interests between mainland-based technology companies and those in South Korea in a bid to boost cooperation in innovation and technology. 

He also expressed his admiration for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, saying that it was “magnificent”.

Yuh said he hoped the bridge would be operating soon as it would provide convenience not only to businesses but also to ordinary people. 

The project, the world’s longest bridge-tunnel complex, is now 95 percent complete. Construction is expected to be finished by the end of the year. 

The Arab Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Lord Edwin E. Hitti said the trip demonstrated that the commissioner valued the participation of foreign chambers in the bay area. He plans to tell chamber members about the excellent facilities and availability of resources on the mainland. This would help them seize more advantages arising from cooperating with Chinese companies.

Eric A. Szweda, governor of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, said the trip offered rare opportunities for foreign business commerce members to meet face-to-face with mainland authorities. He hopes more will be organized in the future.

Szweda suggested future trips could help line up mainland-based foreign companies with mainland local authorities and Hong Kong-based foreign business chambers. This would allow them to target opportunities more efficiently. 

willa@chinadailyhk.com

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