Hong Kong, Guangdong sign 6 cooperation deals to strengthen Greater Bay Area integration
- City leader John Lee and Guangdong Governor Wang Weizhong meet in Guangzhou, with deals signed covering food safety to healthcare cooperation
Hong Kong and Guangdong signed six cooperation deals on Friday as their leaders met in the provincial capital to discuss closer ties under the Greater Bay Area framework.
The agreements covered areas such as food safety and the exemption of Hong Kong residents from having to sign up for basic pension insurance and unemployment coverage in mainland China.
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu and Guangdong Governor Wang Weizhong witnessed the signings after joining the Hong Kong/Guangdong Cooperation Joint Conference in Guangzhou.
“The Hong Kong government will continue to work closely with the Guangdong provincial government to complement each other’s strengths and achieve mutual benefits and win-win results,” Lee said.
“[We will] deepen various aspects of cooperation, jointly promote high-level cooperation and high-quality development in the Greater Bay Area.”
The other four main areas covered in the deals were agricultural technology, exchanges between justice departments, testing and certification, and healthcare cooperation.
The two sides agreed on cooperation in several priority areas, according to the city’s government. The first item listed was innovation and technology, with the governments set to explore measures to make the cross-border flow of people, stocks and data more convenient.
