Beijing ‘losing no time’ to get input on blueprint for ‘Greater Bay Area’
State planning agency had been expected to release plan for southern China megacity cluster in September
Beijing is “losing no time” to seek feedback on a draft plan to develop the “Greater Bay Area” connecting Hong Kong, Macau and southern Guangdong and is looking into the details, including a customs policy, a senior official said on Saturday.
He Lifeng, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), said the state planning agency had been working on a blueprint for the scheme with officials in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau.
“We have drafted the plan and we are seeking feedback – we’re losing no time. We will gather opinions on the draft to make further revisions,” said He, speaking on the sidelines of the party congress in Beijing. The NDRC had been expected to release the plan in September.
China wants to develop a megacity cluster to match New York, San Francisco and Tokyo. The bay area plan covers nine cities in southern Guangdong including Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Dongguan and Zhuhai, as well as Hong Kong and Macau. It covers an area of 56,000 sq km and a population of 68 million. The area’s combined economies were worth some 10 trillion yuan (US$1.51 trillion) last year.
He said he hoped the Greater Bay Area could become a global innovation hub to power economic growth.
