The leaders of the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions agreed on Friday to deepen alignment with national development strategies and further tap into the development opportunities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to boost their respective economies and benefit people’s livelihoods.
During a meeting in Hong Kong on Friday afternoon, Sam Hou-fai and John Lee Ka-chiu also said they expect to foster deeper collaboration in tourism, judicial assistance and infrastructure connectivity.
Sam, Macao’s newly inaugurated chief executive, led a delegation to Hong Kong on Friday morning. They first visited the Centre for Chinese Herbal Medicine Drug Development at Hong Kong Science Park, and also stopped at the Hong Kong Palace Museum to learn more about the research and development of traditional Chinese medicine and cultural tourism in Hong Kong.
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In the afternoon, the Macao delegation made a visit to Government House, where they were welcomed by Lee and other senior city officials.
The heads of the two SARs engaged in in-depth discussions on deepening cooperation between the two regions and on jointly promoting the high-quality development of the Greater Bay Area.
Lee said the brotherhood-like bond between the two cities has fostered frequent exchanges between Hong Kong and Macao. The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, which opened in 2018, has remarkably shortened the two cities’ distance and promoted deeper collaboration, he said.
The initiative that allows permanent residents of either city to travel to the other with one QR code, jointly launched by the two SAR governments in July, also provides a faster and more convenient immigration experience for residents of both cities and further facilitates their exchanges, Lee said.
Lee said both cities have benefited from the “one country, two systems” principle, an advantage that also allows Hong Kong and Macao to achieve complementarity and participate in and promote the development of the Greater Bay Area together. Residents of both cities could also benefit from the economic progress, Lee added.
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For instance, Lee said, Hong Kong and Macao will work together to expand the market of twin-destination tourism of the two cities. Hong Kong will also collaborate with other cities in the bay area, including Macao, to establish a regional and international tourism brand, he said.
Sam expressed gratitude for Hong Kong’s longstanding support for Macao’s development. He acknowledged the strong complementarity between the two regions despite their differing strengths.
Sam said he believes that the regions could further enhance their cooperation on the existing sound foundation, which will lead to even greater development for both places.
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The two cities should be aligned with the overall national development strategy and the development opportunities of the Greater Bay Area, continuously upgrade the quality of cooperation, and jointly enhance the well-being of Hong Kong and Macao residents, Sam said.
Both leaders also discussed future cooperation between the two regions, committing to further deepening industry collaboration in areas such as inno-tech, finance, traditional Chinese medicine, culture, sports and exhibitions.
Contact the writer at amberwu@chinadailyhk.com
