Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu on Monday announced that Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport holders will enjoy immediate visa-free entry to Qatar for stays of up to 30 days, removing previous visa requirements for the city’s residents.

Lee was speaking to reporters following a high-level business luncheon in Qatar, on the first leg of his sixday visit to the Middle East.

He also revealed that Hong Kong and Qatar signed 35 memorandums of understanding and agreements covering a range of crucial fields, including trade, investment, technology, legal cooperation, and financial markets.

Lee described these agreements as laying “a solid foundation for long-term collaboration”.

Summarizing his two-day stay in Qatar, Lee outlined three key objectives of the visit — strengthening government-level ties, exploring new cooperation avenues, and expanding business networks.

“I’ve introduced (Qatar’s leadership) to Hong Kong’s latest developments in finance, professional services, and innovation and technology.

We agreed to deepen collaboration across sectors between Hong Kong and Qatar. We have also expanded our business net-works,” he said.

Among newly signed agreements were two deals between Chinese mainland representatives in Lee’s delegation and Qatar enterprises, focusing on financial services and advanced manufacturing.

Additionally, a letter of intent was signed to deepen financial technology collaboration between Hong Kong, the mainland, and Qatar. Lee highlighted these achievements as showcasing Hong Kong’s bridging role between global economies.

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In a social media post about his roundtable meeting with the Qatar Businessmen Association, Lee identified Qatar as a key node within the Belt and Road Initiative, presenting significant partnership potential.

He encouraged Qatari enterprises to leverage Hong Kong’s unique advantages to access markets in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao  Greater Bay Area and the mainland. Lee and the delegates concluded their activities in Qatar by inspecting an autonomous vehicle system at Doha’s Hamad International Airport before departing for Kuwait.

The advanced system, designed by a Chinese mainland firm whose overseas headquarters is in Hong Kong, has been piloted at Hong Kong International Airport.

Sunny Tan, a member of Lee’s delegation and chairman of the Hong Kong Productivity Council, told China Daily that he hopes to build strong partnerships with regional counterparts and enterprises, describing the Qatar leg of the trip as “fruitful”.

Tan said Qatar and Hong Kong share similar hub roles — as small but resource-rich and internationally connected. He highlighted Qatar’s strong interest in future-focused investments with high potential that mainland and Hong Kong tech firms find attractive. 

Cliff Zhang, CEO and founding partner of Hong Kong-based asset management firm Templewater, revealed plans to open two offices in the Middle East and forge partnerships with local companies.

Zhang said Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds have been active in global markets for many years. Given the evolving geopolitical landscape, these funds — which traditionally focused on established markets like the United States — are now placing greater emphasis on diversification, and seeking more exposure and investment opportunities in East Asia, including China, which Zhang sees as an important opportunity.

Contact the writers at stacyshi@chinadailyhk.com