"The Heart of the Bay Area" Goes Towards Reality - Guangzhou Nansha Coordinates with Hong Kong and Macao to Promote the Construction of the Greater Bay Area One Year Record System | Hong Kong and Macao | Bay Area

Guangzhou, June 14th (Xinhua) - "The Heart of the Bay Area" Goes Towards Reality - A Year's Record of Guangzhou Nansha Cooperating with Hong Kong and Macao to Promote the Construction of the Greater Bay Area

Xinhua News Agency reporters Zhou Qiang, Qi Xianghui, Zhou Ying, and Jie Yikun

Nansha is changing.

A year ago, the State Council issued the "Overall Plan for Deepening Comprehensive Cooperation between Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao in Nansha, Guangzhou and Facing the World", giving Nansha a new mission: to build a major strategic platform based on the Bay Area, coordinating with Hong Kong and Macao, and facing the world. Over the past year, policies have been transforming into projects, and the blueprint has already revealed its physical form.

"The current Nansha is transforming from the geometric center of the Guangdong Hong Kong Macao Greater Bay Area to a regional transportation center and functional hub center." Lu Yixian, Secretary of the Nansha District Committee of Guangzhou, said, "Nansha is the heart of the Bay Area and is laying a solid foundation to promote industrial innovation."

This is Nansha Port Area of Guangzhou Port. Shen Jizhong

Joining hands with institutional innovation in Hong Kong and Macao to promote comprehensive integrated development

He Jueyong, a young man from Macau who started working at the Nansha District Construction Center in January last year, is a post-98 generation. She graduated from the Department of Architecture at Tsinghua University with a bachelor's degree, and with the broad development prospects of the Guangdong Hong Kong Macao Greater Bay Area, she chose Nansha, which is currently undergoing rapid development and large-scale project construction is in full swing.

Now, working at the Nansha District Construction Center for over a year, He Jueyong has been exposed to many major livelihood projects in her position, such as the fourth phase of the resettlement area in Wanqingsha Town and the expansion of Gangwan Primary School... "In Nansha, everything is brand new, which also provides us with space to showcase our talents," He Jueyong said.

The appointment of young people from Hong Kong and Macao as public officials is a microcosm of Nansha's collaboration with Hong Kong and Macao to promote institutional innovation and accelerate integrated development.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, known as HKUST 2.0, opened in September last year at the Qingsheng Hub in Nansha. This university with independent legal personality breaks the traditional departmental structure and adopts a "hub" and "academic domain" academic structure, which will explore the path for global higher education reform.

This is the campus of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Shen Jizhong

"The new academic architecture is conducive to promoting interdisciplinary integration, promoting the development of emerging and cutting-edge disciplines." Ni Mingxuan, the President of the University of Hong Kong, stated that in just one year, the Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Communication, Sensing, Computing, Cross Integration and ubiquitous Internet of Things, led by the University of Hong Kong, was approved as a provincial key laboratory. The institutional advantage of Nansha being the first to try and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology can be described as a two-way journey.

Institutional innovation promotes the continuous expansion of employment and entrepreneurship opportunities for young people in Hong Kong and Macao. As of now, there are 11 Hong Kong and Macao youth entrepreneurship bases in Nansha, and a total of over 500 Hong Kong and Macao youth entrepreneurship teams have been introduced.

It has become a reality to jointly build communities with Hong Kong and Macao compatriots in Nansha. The Nansha Minxin Hong Kong Children's School has opened to address the concerns of Hong Kong and Macau residents working in the local area for their children to attend school; The Guangdong Hong Kong Deep Cooperation Park Hong Kong style community, covering an area of approximately 1.63 square kilometers, has been put on the agenda. Supporting services continue to rise. At the end of last year, Hong Kong United Medical Group landed a general clinic in Nansha, which will directly provide convenient Hong Kong style medical services.

Targeting future technological innovation and leading industries to climb new heights

On June 7th, the Lijian-1 YJ-2 carrier rocket was successfully launched at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. Little known is that the manufacturer of this carrier rocket is the Zhongke Aerospace Industrialization Base located in Nansha.

Hu Xiaowei, General Manager of Zhongke Aerospace Equipment Industry Co., Ltd., said, "The base will promote the full innovation chain of cutting-edge basic research and scientific application, and build a commercial aerospace industry chain and industrial cluster in Nansha, Guangzhou."

Over the past year, Nansha has utilized its latecomer advantage and high-level planning, accelerating the landing of a large number of key laboratories and national key equipment. The first deep-water scientific research dock in China - the Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey's scientific research dock was officially opened in December last year; Accelerate the construction of large-scale scientific facilities related to the sea, such as cold spring ecosystem research facilities.

"Nansha has the endowment to gather scientific and technological resources from Hong Kong, Macao, and even the world to promote major scientific and technological projects." Qian Peiyuan, director of the Hong Kong branch of Guangzhou Marine Laboratory, said that using the laboratory as a platform, communication between marine scientists from mainland China and Hong Kong is smooth. Through the role of a Hong Kong bridgehead, the platform can attract top talents from around the world to participate. Especially, cross-border funding encourages Hong Kong science and technology workers to participate in mainland research projects, allowing Hong Kong scientists to see greater prospects.

Accelerating the layout of technological infrastructure helps Nansha build a new strategic industrial cluster. In the past year, 299 new projects were signed, with strategic emerging industries accounting for 76% of the total; Key projects such as GAC Toyota's fifth line, Nansha wafer, Xinju Energy, and Lianjing Intelligence have been completed and put into operation; Projects such as Rongjie Battery, Juwan Battery, and Watson Biotech have started construction.

This is the Guangdong Hong Kong Macao Youth Innovation Factory located in Nansha, Guangzhou. Shen Jizhong

Wu Yang, the district mayor of Nansha District, said that Nansha is accelerating the layout and construction of the "Xin Chen Hai" industrial cluster, with the core of accelerating the development of "Xin" chips and integrated circuit research and manufacturing, leading by innovative development of strategic emerging industries and future industries that carry "Chen" light and hope, strengthening the development of high-end equipment, intelligent manufacturing, automobiles and other "big" manufacturing as the foundation, and focusing on the development of the "sea" and ocean economy as the guide, to promote industrial development to a new level.

Open portals promote higher levels of global connectivity

Rows of shelves are stacked with large cargo boxes and bags, containing coffee beans from Brazil, Ethiopia, and wine from France, Chile, Italy, and other places. This is the Jundehui Global Food and Wine Complex located in Nansha, Guangzhou, with a total construction area of 350000 square meters. The imported fine wine and coffee are transshipped here and then sold to the mainland.

Tongjiang Dahai - Nansha has a unique advantage of connecting both inside and outside. The Nansha Port is only a ten minute drive from Jundehui Logistics Park. The main port area of Guangzhou Port, the world's fifth largest port, has opened over 150 international liner routes, connecting more than 300 ports in over 100 countries and regions worldwide.

In recent years, especially since the implementation of the Nansha Plan one year ago, focusing on building a high-level gateway for opening up to the outside world, Nansha has made new progress and achievements in enhancing the functions of international shipping hubs, serving enterprises going global, and building new platforms for international exchanges.

Currently, it is the peak season for importing durian from Thailand. In the first five months of this year, over 5700 natural containers of durian entered the domestic market through Nansha Port. With the largest port facing cold storage facility in China that has been built and put into use, Nansha Port has become the largest durian import port in mainland China. According to Tian Min, Deputy Director of the Commerce Bureau of Nansha District, fresh durians can arrive at Nansha Port in just 4 days from Linchaban Port in Thailand, and can be unloaded from the port to the largest fruit wholesale market in South China in just 1.5 hours.

Song Xiaoming, Deputy General Manager of Guangzhou Port Group, said that the service level of the port group is constantly improving. The railway sea rail intermodal transportation business of Nansha Port has achieved normalized operation. The Nansha Port South Station also enables the departure of China Europe and Central Asia trains, connecting to countries such as Kazakhstan.

Backed by the "world factory" and aiming to hold hands with the world, Nansha is accelerating the construction of a comprehensive service base for Chinese enterprises to "go global". At present, the base has attracted nearly 100 professional service institutions to settle in, providing one-stop comprehensive services such as legal, financial, fiscal, and intellectual property for enterprises to "go global".

The integration of rules and mechanisms, coupled with the increasing number of new international communication platforms in Nansha, has promoted openness and renewal. Major events such as the high-level roundtable between the National Development and Reform Commission and American multinational corporations in China, the 2023 Asian Youth Leaders Forum, and the Nansha special event of the Guangzhou International Investment Annual Conference have been held successively, and the circle of friends continues to expand.

Lu Yixian stated that the development of Nansha has entered an unprecedented period of opportunity and a golden period of entrepreneurship and development. The next step for Nansha is to continue promoting the construction of an innovative industrial highland in the Greater Bay Area, a high-level gateway for opening up to the outside world, and the construction of a high-quality modern city, promoting high-quality development to a new level.