Benjamin Mok, the acting commissioner for the Development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (second left); Linda So, the director of Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Guangdong (second right); Huang Duanlian, the deputy director-general of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the People's Government of Guangdong province (first left); and Su Weiguang, the second-level inspector of the Office of the Leading Group on Construction of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area of Guangdong province (first right), officiate at the plaque unveiling ceremony of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Development Promotion Centre in Guangzhou on April 26, 2023. (PHOTO / HKSAR GOVERNMENT)
HONG KONG – The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Development Promotion Centre was officially launched in Guangzhou on Wednesday to highlight opportunities and support Hong Kong residents and enterprises in the GBA.
The center was envisioned in Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region John Lee Ka-chiu’s 2022 Policy Address, aiming to promote opportunities brought about by the GBA development to Hong Kong residents and companies in the region’s cities and provide appropriate assistance to them.
Benjamin Mok, the acting commissioner for the Development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, speaks at the plaque unveiling ceremony of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Development Promotion Centre in Guangzhou on April 26, 2023. (PHOTO / HKSAR GOVERNMENT)
Speaking at a plaque unveiling ceremony, Benjamin Mok, the acting commissioner for the Development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, said the HKSAR government had all along “attached great importance to the development of the GBA, and would continue to strengthen the ties with other cities in the GBA to promote high-level co-operation and high-quality development”.
Linda So, the director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Guangdong (GDETO), said that the center would also “strengthen cooperation with the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, InvestHK and relevant organizations and institutions on the mainland or from overseas to provide information and enquiry services on the GBA.”
The center would organize different activities this year, including exhibitions, seminars, study missions to support Hong Kong residents and enterprises in the GBA and encourage mainland talents and companies to make use of Hong Kong’s unique advantages under “one country, two systems,” So said.
ALSO READ: 'GBA standards' launched to promote regional integration
Linda So, the director of Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Guangdong, speaks at the plaque unveiling ceremony of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Development Promotion Centre in Guangzhou on April 26, 2023. (PHOTO / HKSAR GOVERNMENT)
This year’s events also aimed to attract Chinese mainland talents and companies to come to Hong Kong to explore more opportunities for development and leverage Hong Kong's dual roles in "going global and attracting foreign investment", she added.
“Offices of the HKSAR government on the mainland had set up Dedicated Teams for Attracting Businesses and Talents to proactively reach out to target enterprises and talents, liaise with the world's top 100 universities and promote related schemes, with the aim of attracting high-quality enterprises and talents to Hong Kong to establish or expand their businesses,” she said.
The other guests at the plaque unveiling ceremony included Huang Duanlian, the deputy director-general of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the People's Government of Guangdong province; and Su Weiguang, the second-level inspector of the Office of the Leading Group on Construction of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area of Guangdong province.
Benjamin Mok, the acting commissioner for the Development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (front row, third left); Linda So, the director of Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Guangdong (front row, third right); and other guests pose for a group photo after the plague unveiling ceremony of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Development Promotion Centre held in Guangzhou on April 26, 2023. (PHOTO / HKSAR GOVERNMENT)
After the ceremony, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Development Office of the HKSAR government and the GDETO co-orgainzed “GoGBA Development Day” in collaboration with the Guangzhou Office of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council.
As the first event of the center after it opened, “GoGBA Development Day” was held in an online/offline format with the participation of a number of entrepreneurs, who have successfully developed their businesses in the GBA.
READ MORE: GBA trip highlights development, collaboration
During the event, they shared their experiences and had in-depth exchanges with small and medium-sized enterprises, young entrepreneurs and start-ups in Hong Kong and in the GBA cities on how to make the most of the opportunities brought about by the GBA as well as establish business connections.