Shenzhen to grow as a pilot zone for socialism with Chinese characteristics

Promoting the further construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and a demonstration pilot zone for socialism with Chinese characteristics in Shenzhen will be key projects for Guangdong province over the next five years, according to a senior government official.

"A golden inner bay of 100 kilometers around the Pearl River estuary will be created, with more efforts being made to promote high-quality development and integration within the Greater Bay Area," said Wang Weizhong, governor of Guangdong, during an annual session of the Guangdong Provincial People's Congress on Thursday.

Delivering a government work report to the first session of the 14th Guangdong Provincial People's Congress, which opened in Guangzhou, the provincial capital, Wang said construction of an innovation and entrepreneurship base for Hong Kong and Macao youth will provide more convenience and opportunities for residents from the two special administrative regions to work and live in Guangdong.

"We will also promote the construction of Shenzhen as a leading demonstration zone for socialism with Chinese characteristics through reform and innovation, accelerating the construction of major innovation platforms and an economic belt in ports between Shenzhen and Hong Kong," said Wang.

Guangdong, an economic powerhouse in South China, has set a goal of a 5 percent GDP growth rate in 2023, according to the government work report.

The province's fixed-asset investment is expected to increase by 8 percent year-on-year in 2023, with its import and export volume growing by 3 percent, according to the report.

Over the past five years, Guangdong has resolutely implemented major national strategies, promoting the construction of three cooperative platforms in Hengqin in Zhuhai, Qianhai in Shenzhen and Nansha in Guangzhou, according to Wang.

Several large infrastructure facilities including the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong High-speed Railway have been put into operation.

An overall development plan for a Guangdong-Macao in-depth cooperation zone in Hengqin will be released, helping adjacent Macao to develop a more diversified economy, according to Wang.

"Using Hengqin's proprietary core technologies to promote the development of the manufacturing industry will benefit both the diversified growth of Macao's industries and its integration into the overall national development," said Lei Zhen, chief executive officer of Zhuhai Nanometals Technology.

Sci-tech research and high-tech manufacturing in Hengqin would help drive mutual benefits to Macao businesses and their mainland counterparts, according to Lei, also a member of the Guangdong provincial committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

"Hengqin can utilize Macao's advantages in international platforms and capital, and the mainland's advantages in policies, as well as industrial and supply chains," he said.

Nanometals Technology has realized the industrialization of proprietary core material technologies and applied them to the downstream manufacturing industry. "Core materials made in Hengqin can help upgrade the country's manufacturing development," he said.

High-tech manufacturing has greatly helped boost economic growth in Guangdong, with the province's GDP being estimated to hit 12.8 trillion yuan ($1.89 trillion) in 2022, a year-on-year increase of 2 percent and ranking first in China for the 34th consecutive year, according to the government work report.

The province's economic structure has been continuously optimized over the past five years, with the added value of advanced manufacturing and high-tech manufacturing accounting for 55 percent and 29.5 percent of the industries above designated size, respectively.

Guangdong is now home to 17 Global Fortune 500 companies, with actual utilized foreign capital over the past five years exceeding 800 billion yuan, according to the government work report.

For example, ExxonMobil, a United States energy company, is building a petrochemical project to produce performance polymers used in packaging, automotive and other products in Huizhou, Guangdong province, with a total investment of $10 billion.