The 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) explicitly supports the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in developing into an international innovation and technology center, establishing a high-end talent cluster of global significance, deepening cooperation within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and facilitating the seamless cross-border flow of factors of production. This charts a definitive strategic course for Hong Kong’s development over the next half-decade. As the city navigates a critical transition from stability to prosperity, proactively aligning with national planning and embedding its unique strengths into the broader framework of national development is both an indispensable pathway to long-term prosperity and a pragmatic response to residents’ aspirations for a better life. Among these initiatives, the development of the Northern Metropolis and the optimization of the Greater Bay Area’s eldercare service system serve as two core levers that concurrently drive industrial momentum and social welfare.
As a core undertaking of Hong Kong’s inaugural five-year plan, the Northern Metropolis represents a pivotal strategic layout. It embodies Hong Kong’s commitment to the national strategy of revitalizing the nation through science and education, expanding the spatial boundaries for higher education development, and promoting the integrated advancement of learning, research, industry, and residency. At present, the government has earmarked nearly 1,000 hectares (10 square kilometers) of land across areas such as Hung Shui Kiu/Ha Tsuen and Ngau Tam Mei, alongside a multibillion-dollar commitment to support campus construction and neighborhood amenities. Furthermore, the establishment of Hong Kong’s third medical school in Ngau Tam Mei has been confirmed, which will create robust industrial synergy with the San Tin Technopole and the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Cooperation Zone in the Lok Ma Chau Loop, thereby establishing a preliminary development framework.
Nevertheless, translating this blueprint into tangible outcomes requires sustained efforts in institutional synergy and specialized positioning. First, cross-departmental coordination mechanisms must be reinforced to streamline functional intersections — such as land supply, educational license approvals, and curriculum accreditation — that currently fall under the purview of disparate departments. The specific application procedures and evaluation criteria for incoming institutions should be promulgated expeditiously to mitigate institutional transaction costs and provide clear predictability for local and overseas institutions participating in the construction.
The 15th Five-Year Plan has ushered in unprecedented development opportunities for Hong Kong. Whether through the industry-education integration layout of the Northern Metropolis or the upgrading of livelihood services via Greater Bay Area eldercare, the ultimate objectives remain the enhancement of Hong Kong’s long-term competitiveness and the sense of civic fulfillment
Second, a differentiated development path must be upheld, prioritizing the introduction of vantage disciplines such as innovation, technology, health, and medical sciences. By closely aligning with national and local industrial imperatives in critical sectors like biomedical technology and artificial intelligence, and leveraging the geographical proximity to the Lok Ma Chau Loop and the Shenzhen industrial belt, Hong Kong can deepen "Hong Kong research, Shenzhen commercialization" industry-research synergy, thereby forging the Northern Metropolis’s irreplaceable core competitiveness.
Third, the tender and expression-of-interest phases should be initiated promptly to engage local institutions, top-tier mainland universities, and globally renowned higher education bodies. Exploring diverse cooperation models, such as co-founding specialized institutes and joint laboratories, will harness the geographical advantages of straddling both sides of the boundary, transforming the Northern Metropolis into an international education hub wherein elite global academic resources converge.
Cross-border eldercare: safeguarding senior welfare through standards alignment
As population aging intensifies in Hong Kong and the demand for diversified eldercare services grows, the progressive maturation of the Greater Bay Area’s "one-hour living circle" offers local seniors the freedom to opt for "cross-border retirement". In recent years, the continuous expansion of the Elderly Health Care Voucher Greater Bay Area Pilot Scheme, alongside the integration of the eHealth System, which now covers users across the city with 21 designated Chinese mainland service points enabling authorized medical record reviews, has laid a solid foundation for cross-border eldercare. Yet ensuring that seniors can spend their twilight years on the mainland side of the Greater Bay Area with genuine peace of mind and confidence necessitates further refinement in regulatory alignment, service quality, and supportive safeguards.
Foremost, the alignment of eldercare service standard systems must be propelled to optimize existing cross-border retirement arrangements. Efforts should be made to explore mutual recognition mechanisms for service specifications and rating systems between institutions on both sides. While safeguarding service quality, leveraging mainland cost advantages will enable the introduction of more-affordable retirement options, allowing seniors to enjoy high-end services at reasonable prices and realizing the vision of "dignified retirement with guaranteed quality".
Furthermore, the depth of medical integration must be deepened. The scope of application and service items available through the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme should be progressively broadened — expanding from current outpatient provisions to encompass rehabilitation nursing, chronic disease management, and other domains. The two-way interoperability mechanism for electronic health records must also be perfected to promote the secure and orderly circulation of cross-border medical data, thereby alleviating the burden of duplicate examinations for seniors and enhancing the continuity and precision of cross-border clinical diagnoses.
Additionally, humanitarian care and risk-mitigation frameworks should be reinforced. Establishing standardized family notification procedures and cross-border emergency contact channels, alongside refining protocols for handling sudden illnesses and unexpected incidents, will ensure that family members remaining in Hong Kong can stay promptly informed of an elderly relative’s condition. Concurrently, comprehensive regulatory and grievance-handling mechanisms for cross-border retirement must be consolidated to genuinely safeguard the rights and interests of older adults, imbuing cross-border eldercare with not merely convenience, but warmth and security.
The 15th Five-Year Plan has ushered in unprecedented development opportunities for Hong Kong. Whether through the industry-education integration layout of the Northern Metropolis or the upgrading of livelihood services via Greater Bay Area eldercare, the ultimate objectives remain the enhancement of Hong Kong’s long-term competitiveness and a sense of civic fulfillment. Provided that Hong Kong capitalizes on its intrinsic strengths, proactively aligns with national strategies, and advances policy implementation through pragmatic measures, it will undoubtedly achieve a dual harvest of economic upgrading and livelihood enhancement while contributing to national development.
The author is a Hong Kong deputy to the National People’s Congress, a member of the Legislative Council, and a member of the Southern District Council.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
