If 2021 marked the year of Hong Kong getting back on track, 2022 will mark the special administrative region starting anew in which both opportunities and challenges beckon. Embarking on a new stage of development upon the restoration of social stability, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government will have to undertake initiatives to inject an impetus into the local economy while cautiously responding to the ever-changing external landscape. Everyone has a stake in reigniting the momentum for Hong Kong’s economic growth; and even though our New Year’s resolutions for the city may vary, I believe the following three are among the prevailing wishes for our home city.
Firstly, Hong Kong must break free from the debilitating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has plagued the city’s export- and trade-oriented economy for nearly two years. Surely there is no better guarantor than the HKSAR government for delivering us from the shackles of the pandemic. Therefore, resumption of personnel exchanges with the Chinese mainland remains the top priority among many imperatives. To this end, the incumbent administration, or possibly the next, must act fast to establish a health-code system compatible with the one adopted on the mainland. Measures to promote and facilitate full vaccination would be part and parcel of expediting the creation of the health code.
Our youngsters, who are the hope for our future, should be properly groomed with the aim of making the best use of their talents
The authorities can then, on this basis, introduce vaccine passports in tandem with the proposed “travel bubbles” and “business bubbles” programs that would, if managed properly, resume a certain extent of access to the Chinese mainland. Furthermore, the HKSAR government may consider, for the time being, providing additional subsidies and relief measures to the sectors severely affected by the pandemic, such as the catering, tourism and convention and exhibition industries, and further revitalize them with promotional activities when the pandemic subsides.
Secondly, it is everyone’s hope that the HKSAR government can formulate and execute visionary plans for the long-term development of Hong Kong. The city’s composition of economic activities must be adjusted in order to inject new impetus into its future development.
Considering the geographical distribution of industries, the HKSAR government can, in order to consolidate Hong Kong’s capability in finance and innovation technology, institute a dual-core development pattern of “finance in the south and innovation in the north”, which will be an out-of-the-box strategy that differs from the existing pattern. Hopefully, the New Territories North development project, which encompasses the Innovation and Technology Park in the Lok Ma Chau Loop, will become Hong Kong’s answer to Silicon Valley and become an important constituent of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area sci-tech innovation corridor.
Accelerating the development of the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park will be part and parcel of the success of Hong Kong starting anew. The key tasks are to include the procurement of top-notch international R&D enterprises, and collaboration with higher-education institutions to form a value chain of production, education and research in the Greater Bay Area. The Innovation and Technology Park will act as a magnet for world-class IT talent and resources at home and from abroad.
The HKSAR government will have to work closely with mainland authorities in loosening restrictions on, or even allowing the free flow of, mainland IT professionals into the Lok Ma Chau Loop, in the same way as the mainland has worked out cross-border cooperation with other places. Furthermore, the HKSAR government can provide policy initiatives, such as supporting researchers, providing funding for universities and assisting professors in conducting research with external partners, so as to facilitate the conversion of sci-tech research results into daily applications.
Thirdly, pluralistic development will benefit the society as a whole. Hong Kong should, in pursuit of diversifying its industrial structure and key services, put more effort in other economic pillars such as aviation, shipping, logistics, cultural and creative industries, and international arbitration services. Economic diversity aside, policy reform will be a pivotal undertaking to addressing the deep-seated problems in Hong Kong.
It will take a creative mindset and a multipronged approach to increase the supply of land and housing while slashing the timespan for land development. Our youngsters, who are the hope for our future, should be properly groomed with the aim of making the best use of their talents. As for the elderly who have made invaluable contributions to society over the years, the HKSAR government should ensure they are not ensnared in poverty by providing them with subsidies and adequate elderly-care facilities.
As far as the future of Hong Kong is concerned, resolving existing conundrums, ensuring long-term sustainability and promoting pluralistic development are no doubt the prevailing aspirations of the public. Rosy as these aims are, the means to achieving them is not at our fingertips. Therefore, the HKSAR government must, with the enlistment of the public from all walks of life, take on the commitment to materializing these three goals, and that would be the starting step to a promising future for Hong Kong.
The author is senior research officer of the One Country Two Systems Research Institute.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.