Hong Kong and Shenzhen together can form a world-class
metropolis by enhancing the flow of passengers, goods, capital and
information between the cities, a report has said.
After an eight-month research project, experts from the Bauhinia
Foundation Research Center, a local think tank, said that if the
cities were to work together, they could boost their combined GDP
by $1.1 trillion by 2020.
While there was obvious competition between the two cities,
working together would be mutually beneficial, the experts
said.
The center's report looked at the feasibility of building a Hong
Kong-Shenzhen metropolis.
Researchers spoke to government officials and businessmen from
both cities, as well as more than 1,000 Shenzhen citizens.
Among the key recommendations was the formation of a "Hong
Kong-Shenzhen living sphere", with all areas accessible within one
hour.
The report also proposed the cities carry out a study on the
connection of their airport rail links with a view to creating a
"super airport hub".
Another key recommendation was to allow Shenzhen residents to
travel freely to a "special business zone" in Hong Kong.
To facilitate the smooth flow of people, it suggested Shenzhen
citizens be issued with electronic entry permits which they can use
to make multiple visits to Hong Kong within a fixed period.
At the same time, it was suggested that entry visa application
fees be lowered or cancelled, while the time for document checks
for mainland travelers should be reduced to 15 -20 minutes.
"The governments of Hong Kong and Shenzhen are both very
supportive of the overall direction of our study," the center's
chairman Anthony Wu told a press conference yesterday.
"When we talk about molding the two cities into a metropolis, we
are aiming for a win-win solution, with no such thing as a winner
and a loser," he said.
"If we join hands to build a metropolis, we will attract more
foreign investors and multinational corporations to open regional
centers here.
"Of course there is competition between us, but healthy
competition combined with cooperation will make the pie bigger and
benefit both of us," he explained.
Zhu Wenhui, a consultant to the research group, said at present,
Hongkongers can travel freely to Shenzhen but people from Shenzhen
have to get a visa to enter Hong Kong.
The mutually free flow of people was necessary for the two
places to complement each other, he said.
The proposal to allow Shenzhen citizens to visit Hong Kong on
multiple electronic permits was not a fully free system because
they would still have to apply for visas, Zhu said.
Only those who go to Hong Kong for shopping, entertainment,
holidays or business are issued multiple entry visas, but they
cannot hold jobs in Hong Kong, he said.
(China Daily August 10, 2007)
