Hong Kong and Guangdong Province have taken major steps forward towards greater economic integration.

They reached agreement on a committee to speed up a cross-sea bridge plan and arrived at a new mechanism for co-operation that makes full play of each other's strengths.

The fast-track bid to build the bridge linking Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macao has received new momentum with the greenlight for a co-ordination committee to examine the advance works of the proposed project.

Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa disclosed yesterday the committee will study the hydrology, environmental protection, economic benefits and routing of the bridge. All costs incurred will be shared by the three sides.

The committee, which will be convened by the Hong Kong side and comprise three representatives from each place, will hold its first meeting on August 30. Results of the study will be submitted to the central government for approval, Tung said.

Tung revealed this after the Hong Kong/Guangdong Co-operation Joint Conference held its sixth meeting at Government House yesterday. The delegations were led by Tung and Guangdong Governor Huang Huahua.

Co-chaired for the first time by the administrative heads of the two places, the meeting was also the first official exchange at the highest level between the two places after the signing of the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) on June 29.

The meeting provided the two sides with a chance to map out a new chapter of co-operation to boost economic development by complementing each other's strengths.

The ultimate goal is to transform the Greater Pearl River Delta area into the most vibrant and competitive economic zone in the world within the framework of CEPA, the two sides agreed.

To fulfil the goal, both sides would further complement on and exploit each other's strengths and resources.

"On one hand, we will make full use of the advantages of Guangdong Province's powerful, modernized manufacturing industry," Tung said.

"On the other, we will fully exploit advantages of Hong Kong's finance, trade, shipping and logistic and high value-added service sectors."

Huang fully agreed with the chief executive on this point.

"Guangdong is aiming to become one of the most important manufacturing bases in the world," he said. "At the same time, Hong Kong will become one of the world's most important service centres with logistics and finance as its main pillars to achieve a win-win situation."

Both parties agreed to establish a new mechanism for co-operation and operation.

A joint liaison office to be formed under the conference will be chaired by executive heads of the two sides, namely Hong Kong's Chief Secretary Donald Tsang and Guangdong's Vice-Governor Tang Bingquan.

They will re-organize existing task forces on Hong Kong and Guangdong co-operation into 15 expert groups to study and follow up co-operation projects. They will serve as an extended mechanism for exchange of ideas between both jurisdictions.

Apart from entering a tripartite feasibility study on the inter-boundary bridge, the two sides also agreed to enhance co-operation in 12 areas.

They include a notification mechanism on infectious diseases and a regional express train service connecting Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

On tourism, residents from the cities of Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Foshan have been allowed to visit Hong Kong in their private capacity since July 28.

"This pilot scheme will extend to Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Zhuhai from August 20, and will also be open to the whole province from January 1 with a view to propelling tourism and economic development in Hong Kong," Tung said.

The scheme, launched July 28, has been well received. For merely three days from July 28, some 36,000 permits to visit Hong Kong were issued, Huang said.

Huang said Hong Kong received a total of 6 million mainland visitors last year. The new policy would likely push the number of mainland tourists to more than 10 million, he said.

(Hong Kong Edition, China Daily August 6, 2003)