Lai Chi Wo enclave sets pace for revival of Hong Kong villages – but need to ease regulations is apparent

A 400-year-old vacated Hakka village, near the border town of Sha Tau Kok, has been quietly revived with local villagers moving back to farm and  receive visitors, setting a precedent  for 70 other country park enclaves where development has been frozen.

The revitalisation in Lai Chi Wo village, in northeastern New Territories, coincides with an initiative highlighted in the policy address early this year, under which the Environment Bureau was instructed to map out a plan to promote the conservation and traditional values of rural areas with local communities and non-governmental organisations.

Hong Kong has 77 country park enclaves –  villages within the boundaries but not part of the park itself. Development has been frozen while the government considers zoning plans,  but the matter has sparked conflict between conservationists who want the areas protected, and landowners who fear losing development rights.

But the Lai Chi Wo project,  started about two years ago, highlights the need to introduce flexibility  on issues such as agricultural and guesthouse policies so that small rural businesses can survive and thrive.

Initiated by a group of volunteers, retired villagers and academics, the Lai Chi Wo revitalisation recently gained financial support from  HSBC, which will fund the project until 2017.

“The village site is a forgotten gem of the city… it is unique that the village is surrounded by three world-class natural spots,”  said geography professor Ng Cho-nam  of the University of Hong Kong, the project’s early initiator.

The 90-hectare site with over 200 traditional Hakka houses had a population of 1,000 in its prime. It fell to 450 in the 1950s and was almost emptied in the 1960s, with most villagers emigrating. Three families have returned and  at least seven farmers are operating since the project was launched.