Hong Kong and Shenzhen are in talks to allow the local government-run Science and Technology Parks Corporation to lease and manage certain properties on the mainland as part of a broader effort to develop a joint innovation zone at the Lok Ma Chau-Futian border, the city’s leader has revealed. The proposal, unveiled in Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor ’s fourth policy address on Wednesday, is part of a wider push to integrate Hong Kong into the ambitious Greater Bay Area scheme, with an aim to encourage enterprises to start businesses in Shenzhen to “establish a presence”. Under the new plans, which are expected to be implemented within next year, the Science and Technology Parks Corporation would rent and operate some premises in the Futian innovation and technology zone, then further sublet spaces for local, overseas and mainland Chinese companies. “Such cooperation is imperative because [on] the road of innovation and technology, one will never go too fast and should strive to go faster,” Lam said during her policy address on Monday. “We must … foster the development of the ecological chain of the innovation and technology industry in Hong Kong and Shenzhen, so as to offer tremendous employment and start-up business opportunities for the young people in Hong Kong.” In addition to the cross-border management proposal, the government revealed plans to free up 20 hectares of land at Hong Kong’s Lok Ma Chau Control Point – near the innovation zone – for tech development purposes. The site is able to be released due to the relocation of the existing border control facilities to the Shenzhen side of the checkpoint under a co-location arrangement at the new Huanggang port. The Greater Bay Area project plans to integrate Hong Kong, Macau and nine mainland cities in Guangdong province into an economic and technology powerhouse to rival the likes of the US’ Silicon Valley. Hong Kong leader pledges to rebuild confidence and restore trust in policy address A government source said the new plan to have the corporation lease certain premises in Shenzhen’s Futian district was rolled out to “speed things up”, as it would take longer for the first batch of buildings on Hong Kong’s side of the innovation zone to be completed sometime 2024. One or two existing buildings in Futian, which were not currently used for research and development, had been earmarked as a starting point, the source said. The source also said the areas in Shenzhen managed by the corporation would provide another option for enterprises seeking space, given that the Hong Kong Science Park was already near saturation, with an occupancy rate of about 87 per cent by this August. “[The government] hopes that with the existing experience and network of the Science and Technology Parks Corporation … it could create an attractive package for enterprises to move to [Shenzhen],” the source said. The government, however, has been unable to provide an estimate for the expected rents at the Futian sites, or for the amount slated to be spent overall, saying some details were still under discussion. A corporation spokeswoman was also unable to provide further information on the plan, only saying they “welcomed” the policy address’ suggestions. Mark Mak Hin-yu, co-founder of the Hong Kong-based tech start-up Roborn Technology, said the new arrangement, namely the reassuring prospect of dealing with a Hong Kong corporation, could encourage his company to expand its footprint in the Greater Bay Area. “Futian has been a district renowned for the support the municipal government offered for tech start-ups,” said Mak, whose company already has one office in Shenzhen, but does most of it’s work in Hong Kong to better protect its patents. “A Hong Kong corporation’s management would boost our confidence in setting up a base there to develop artificial intelligence.” But Mak said he still believed the most urgent measure to help start-ups weather the challengers of the Covid-19 pandemic would be allowing travel between Hong Kong and the mainland without a 14-day quarantine. The efficiency of his company’s research and development process had been lowered by at least 30 per cent due to travel restrictions, he added. Hong Kong leader lays out steps to better link city with rest of Greater Bay Area Lam’s policy address also proposed a five-year, HK$2 billion (US$258 million) global professorship scheme that aims to attract around 100 top academics to boost tech development in Hong Kong. The scheme – which would subsidise the salaries of the academics and their teams, and help set up labs to facilitate their research – is expected to be rolled out next year at the earliest, a government source said. Meanwhile, the government’s Smart City Blueprint for Hong Kong 2.0 is also expected to be released next month, setting out more than 130 initiatives including the new “iAM Smart” app, which would provide online services for 20 frequently used public services, such as tax return submissions or vehicle licence renewal. Additional reporting by Natalie Wong