The Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Patrick Nip, started his visit to Foshan, Zhaoqing and Jiangmen, three cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area (Bay Area), on January 10, to meet with officials of the municipal governments and representatives of Hong Kong enterprises, and see for himself the latest developments in these cities. The visit will last until January 12.

     Upon his arrival in Foshan yesterday (January 10), he met with the Mayor of the Foshan Municipal Government, Mr Zhu Wei, and Vice Mayor Ms Yu Jin to discuss the latest developments of the two places as well as future co-operation opportunities under the Bay Area development plan.

     This morning (January 11), Mr Nip visited Sanshan New City, a demonstration area for Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao high-end services in Foshan, to learn about its blueprint for taking forward complementary co-operation between the high-end service sectors of Hong Kong and Macao and the manufacturing industry of the Pearl River Delta region. He also visited the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Technology Exhibition and Exchange Center to get first-hand information on the opportunities brought by the Bay Area development to young people.

     Mr Nip then toured the production headquarters of a Hong Kong home appliance enterprise in Foshan and met with representatives of the enterprise to gauge their views on Foshan's business environment and opportunities for Hong Kong enterprises in the municipality.

     In the afternoon, Mr Nip departed for Zhaoqing and visited Zhaoqing New District. While taking a bird's eye view from the Yanyang Lake viewing deck, Mr Nip was briefed on the infrastructural developments of Zhaoqing. He also took the opportunity to learn about the underground tube system and visit the new district's business centre.

     In the evening Mr Nip met with the Mayor of the Zhaoqing Municipal Government, Mr Fan Zhongjie, and Vice Mayor Ms Chen Xuanqun to exchange views on strengthening co-operation between Hong Kong and Zhaoqing. They also shared views on further utilising the edges of both places to contribute to the development of the Bay Area.

     Mr Nip will depart for Jiangmen tomorrow (January 12) to continue his visit to the Bay Area cities.

Ends/Thursday, January 11, 2018
Issued at HKT 19:55

NNNN