Synergy Innovation Development Report of GBA

1.Introduction 

A bay area generally refers to a port group and a city cluster composed by ports and towns around a seaport city. It is an important carrier in international economic development and a cradle for high-tech companies. Being open, innovative, internationalized and livable, bay areas have been attracting entrepreneurs and investors and have become important growth poles and engines for global economic development.

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, which includes nine cities of Guangdong province – Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing – as well as the Hong Kong SAR and the Macao SAR, covers an area of56,000 square kilometers, which accounts for0.6 percent of the Chinese territory. Its economic output in2016 hit9.2 trillion yuan (US$1.35 trillion), accounting for12.4 percent of the national total. It is home to68 million permanent residents, which is4.9 percent of the population of China. All these characteristics meet the requirements for the establishment of another world-class bay area after the New York City Bay Area, the San Francisco Bay Area and the Tokyo Bay Area.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has been attaching great importance to the cooperation among Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao. Xi commanded that work should be done to deepen Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao cooperation and stimulate the economic development in Hong Kong and Macao, so as to keep the long-term prosperity and stability in these two SARs, manifest the successful practice of the“one country, two systems” principle, and advance the great cause of national reunification.

Xi also said that Guangdong should give full play to its unique geographical advantage and its close economic ties with Hong Kong and Macao, observe the“one country, two systems” principle and basic laws of Hong Kong and Macao, strengthen cooperation efforts and raise cooperation levels based on mutual respects and mutual benefits, in order to create a new phase for Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao cooperation and make greater contribution to the long-term prosperity and stability in Hong Kong and Macao.

In this year’s“Government Work Report” delivered on March5, Premier Li Keqiang announced that efforts should be made to boost deeper cooperation between the mainland and Hong Kong and Macao, and a Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area city cluster development plan shall be worked out, in order to give full play to the advantages of Hong Kong and Macao and raise their positions and functions in national economic development and China’s opening up.

2.Overview and descriptions 

2.1 Overview 

Innovations are a driving force for the economic growth of a country or region. Scientific analysis can be made on the technical innovation capability of a region to specify its strengths and weaknesses as well as the operation status of its innovation system, so that decision makers can find out problems, improve the innovation system and provide basis for the government in the formulation and implementation of regional innovation strategies.

Patents can reflect the innovation capability of a country or region. This report shall use patents as an important scale in measuring the innovation capability of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and innovation dimensions are used as an important evaluation index. Analysis shall be made on the patent data of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in the past five years, which will be compared with the data of the San Francisco Bay Area. From the comparison, advantages and disadvantages of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area shall be concluded.

The report will give an introduction to the innovation institutions and industrial advantages of different metropolis regions covered by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, including the east coast cities of the Greater Bay Area, the west coast cities of the Greater Bay Area, and the Hong Kong-Macao region, hence showcasing the innovation capability of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. With a recognition of the problems and shortcomings concerning the innovation capability, the report will try to explore approaches and directions for synergy innovation development in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area from such aspects as synergy in system, synergy in finance and technology, synergy in technological innovation, synergy in industries, synergy in talents, and infrastructure interconnection and interworking.

2.2Descriptions 

This report will introduce the innovation capability and innovation synergy capability of11 cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. It will focus on four measurement indexes – invention patents, PCT patents, cited patents and patent family. Statistical analysis will be made to describe the innovation capability.

Source of data: The report makes use of the patent database of Clarivate Analytics (formerly Thomson Reuters IP and Science). Statistics will be made on the patent data of the San Francisco Bay Area and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in nearly five years from2012 to2016.

Selection of institutions: To analyze the innovation institutions and industries of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the invention patents of each city in the past three years (2014-2016) were collected. Innovation institutions in each city were ranked according to the numbers of invention patents they owned, and the top50 institutions were selected.

A total of510 innovation institutions – colleges, research institutes and research labs – were chosen for analysis, including50 institutions from Guangzhou,50 from Shenzhen,50 from Zhuhai,50 from Foshan,50 from Huizhou,50 from Dongguan,50 from Zhongshan,50 from Jiangmen,50 from Zhaoqing,50 from Hong Kong and10 from Macao (There are comparatively less patents in Macao because the city focuses on the business service industry).

3. Innovation 

This report makes a study on four innovation indexes, namely the invention patents, PCT patents, cited patents and patent family, in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area which includes the east coast cities, the west coast cities and the Hong Kong-Macao region. Analysis is made on the distribution of industries involving innovation institutions in these regions. The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is compared with the San Francisco Bay Area in such aspects as the number of patents, distribution of innovation institutions and advantageous industries involving innovation institutions.

3.1 Invention patents

Invention patents are an important index in measuring the technological innovation capability of a country or region. This report offers statistics of and analysis on the number of invention patents of the11 cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, which are compared with the number of invention patents of the seven cities in the San Francisco Bay Area.

3.1.1 Number of invention patents of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area

Statistics indicates that in2012-2016, the number of annual invention patents of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area was accordingly61,764,71,037,103,610,155,074 and193,712, which showed a steady increase year by year at the respective rate of15.01 percent,45.85 percent,49.67 percent and24.92 percent. In2015, the number of invention patents saw the largest increase in five years, up nearly50 percent. The total number of invention patents increased by213.6 percent in five years.

To be specific, the number of invention patents of the east coast cities (including Shenzhen, Dongguan and Huizhou) was bigger than the number of the west coast cities (including Guangzhou, Zhuhai, Foshan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing) and the Hong Kong-Macao region (including Hong Kong and Macao). West coast cities and east coast cities saw a year-on-year increase in the number of invention patents, while the change was unobvious in Hong Kong and Macao. In2014 and2015, the west coast cities witnessed an annual growth rate of over80 percent.

In2016, the number of invention patents of the east coast cities exceeded100,000, and in the west coast cities and the Hong Kong-Macao region, the number was nearly80,000 and less than20,000, respectively.

3.1.2 Comparison between two bay areas in the number of invention patents

The number of invention patents of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in2012-2016 was bigger than that of the San Francisco Bay Area, and the gap has been expanding. In2012, the number of invention patents of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area exceeded that of the San Francisco Bay Area by27,600, while in2016 the difference was enlarged to138,200.

The San Francisco Bay Area had witnessed a decrease in the number of invention patents since2014, with the number in2015 dropped by17.96 percent. In comparison, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area had experiencing fast increase in the number of invention patents, with an annual growth rate of33.86 percent; the year2015 saw a huge rise at49.67 percent from a year ago.

3.1.3 Comparison between two bay areas in industries that owned the invention patents 

Invention patents of the two bay areas are classified according to the IPC (International Patent Classification) method. Of the eight industry types specified by the IPC, industries that own invention patents mainly belong to type H (electrics) in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, with a proportion of33.74 percent, followed by type-G (physics) industries. In the San Francisco Bay Area, type-G industries take a dominant position with a proportion of39.40 percent, followed by type-H industries. In both bay areas, type-D and type-E industries command small proportions, and the proportion of type-D (textile and papermaking) industries is less than1 percent.

Type-A (human life necessities) industries are of a bigger proportion in the San Francisco Bay Area, but the proportion of type-B (operational transportation, including aviation and aerocraft) industries is smaller. See the chart below for the comparison of industries between the two bay areas.

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the San Francisco Bay Area have their respective advantages in the distribution of industries. For example, type-B industries take the fifth position out of eight industries in the San Francisco Bay Area, but move up to the third position in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Type-F (mechanical engineering, lighting, heating, weapons and blasting) industries are of a higher proportion in the number of invention patents in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area than in the San Francisco Bay Area.

3.2 PCT patents

PCT stands for Patent Cooperation Treaty. By filing one international patent application under the PCT, applicants can simultaneously seek protection for an invention in a very large number of countries.

From2012 to2016, the number of PCT patents owned by the east coast cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area was bigger than the number of the west coast cities or of the Hong Kong-Macao region. The west coast cities saw a year-on-year increase in the number of PCT patents but a slight drop in2016. The east coast cities experienced an obvious fluctuation in the growth rate of PCT patents, with a big drop in2015. In the Hong Kong-Macao region, the number of PCT patents is relatively small, being less than800 each year, and saw negative growth in2013 and2014.

Among the11 cities, Macao had the highest the annual compound growth rate at39.16 percent, followed by Foshan, Huizhou, Dongguan, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. Zhaoqing and Jiangmen saw negative growth.

3.3 Cited patents

Cited patent refers to the number of patent citations, which indicate the times of follow-up applications of a patent under observation. The number of citations can reflect the quality of a patent, and a frequently cited patent is always a high-quality patent.

There was a big gap in the number of cited patents between the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the San Francisco Bay Area. Statistics shows that in2012-2016, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area had more invention patents, but its number of cited patents was much smaller than that of the San Francisco Bay Area, especially in2013 and2014.

In2012, the number of cited invention patents of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area was only53.56 percent of that of the San Francisco Bay Area, and the figure dropped to below30 percent in2013-2014; in2015, the gap was narrowed to39.52 percent but was widened again to22.81 percent in2016.

3.4 Patent family 

A patent family is a set of patents taken in various countries and published in one language or different languages, to protect a single invention. (In this report, the patent family refers to the DWPI patent family.)

From2012 to2016, the number of DWPI patents owned by the east coast cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area was bigger than the number of the west coast cities or of the Hong Kong-Macao region. The east coast cities had more than160,000 DWPI patents in2016, while the west coast cities had over120,000. Both west coast cities and east coast cities saw a year-on-year increase in the number of DWPI patents, but the west coast cities had an obviously higher growth rate, which reached to over70 percent in2014. In Hong Kong and Macao, the number of DWPI patents is relatively small, being less than20,000 each year, and saw negative growth in2014.

 

In annual compound growth rate, Foshan city took a lead among the west coast cities with a70.34 percent annual compound growth rate, followed by Guangzhou and Jiangmen, each at above50 percent. Among the east coast cities, Huizhou stood out with the highest annual compound growth rate, with Dongguan and Shenzhen ranking second and third. Macao had a higher annual compound growth rate than Hong Kong, but its body of patents is much smaller.

3.5 Analysis on industries involving innovation institutions 

3.5.1 Overall analysis on innovation institutions 

This analysis is based on the number of invention patents in2014-2016 of each city covered by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Invention patents were classified according to the innovation institutions they belong to, and each innovation institution was matched with a specific industry. The top50 institutions with the biggest numbers of invention patents were selected from each city, except for Macao, which has a relatively smaller patent body and hence chose only10 institutions. Finally a total of510 innovation institutions were selected as samples for analysis, which were classified into21 industry categories according to their functions in national economy, including the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry; computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry; information transmission, software and information technology service industry; electricity and heating power production and supply industry; etc. Universities and colleges, which are a major source of innovations, were classified into the“universities and colleges” category.

Like all the other bay areas in the world, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is a gathering place for high-tech companies, popular startups, top manufacturing firms and first-class universities. According to statistics,115 institutions, or22.55 percent, of the510 samples belonged to the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry, which commanded the highest proportion in industry distribution. The computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry ranked second, with a proportion of21.96 percent, followed by universities and colleges with a proportion of8.04 percent. Such a distribution of industries manifests the situation of industry distribution in Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Shenzhen. Ranking fourth and fifth were the information transmission, software and information technology service industry and the chemical materials and chemical product manufacturing industry. For more information, please refer to the graphic and chart below.

Being a“world factory,” Guangzhou has an obvious advantage in manufacturing. If calculated by independent economic entities, the manufacturing industry of Guangzhou ranks fifth in size in the world. The manufacturing industry also had a dominant proportion in the number of innovation institutions, with340 institutions, or66.67 percent, of the510 samples belonging to the manufacturing industry.

 

3.5.2 Analysis on west coast cities, east coast cities and Hong Kong-Macao region

As the data shows, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has had a solid foundation for establishing a world-class bay area and has surpassed the San Francisco Bay Area in some aspects. Its distribution of industries that involve innovation institutions caters to the pattern of top bay areas in the world. By making data analysis, this report explores the characteristics of innovation institutions in the west coast cities, east coast cities and the Hong Kong-Macao region, in order to find out advantageous industries in each city under the Greater Bay Area.

A collection of300 innovation institutions in20 industries from west coast cities were selected as samples of the report, and the top three industries were the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry (71 institutions), the computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry (53 institutions), and the information transmission, software and information technology service industry (27 institutions). Universities and colleges and the chemical materials and chemical product manufacturing industry were joint fourth, followed by the scientific research and technical service industry in the fifth position.

Among the west coast cities, Guangzhou showed significant strength in universities and colleges. Of the41 universities and colleges in the510 samples,12 are located in Guangzhou, which lead other institutions in the number of invention patents. The west coast cities have an advantageous manufacturing industry, which involved194 institutions or64.67 percent of the selected institutions in this region. In Zhuhai and Foshan, two dominant industries were the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry and the computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry. In Foshan, the leading industry was the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry. In Jiangmen and Zhaoqing, the chemical materials and chemical product manufacturing industry and the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry were the most important.

Of the east coast cities,150 innovation institutions in18 industries were selected, and the top three industries were the computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry (52 institutions), the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry (30 institutions), and the information transmission, software and information technology service industry (11 institutions).

The computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry had a dominant position among all industries in the east coast cities, due to the many high-tech companies in Shenzhen, including Huawei Technologies, Tencent, ZTE and BYD. Of the innovation institutions from Shenzhen,44 percent were in the computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry; in Dongguan and Huizhou, the percentage of innovation institutions was34 percent and26 percent, respectively. Dongguan had the strongest electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry among the east coast cities, with30 percent of the innovation institutions involved; in Shenzhen and Huizhou, the percentage was16 percent and14 percent, respectively.

In the Hong Kong-Macao region,60 innovation institutions –50 from Hong Kong and10 from Macao – in14 industries were selected, and the top five industries were the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry (14 institutions), the business service industry (8 institutions), universities and colleges (8 institutions), the rubber and plastic product industry (7 institutions), and the computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry (7 institutions).

Innovation institutions of the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry are all located in Hong Kong. Of the rubber and plastic product industry and the computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry, most institutions are in Hong Kong. Macao has most of the innovation institutions of the business service industry. There are six universities and colleges in Hong Kong and two in Macao.

Ten industries, which are mostly manufacturing and service industries, are of great advantages in the cities covered by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. The computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry was among the top three industries in nine cities, with44 percent of innovation institutions from Shenzhen and34 percent from Dongguan involved in this industry. The electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry was also among the top three industries in nine cities, and Jiangmen, Foshan and Dongguan led other cities in the number of innovation institutions in this industry with the proportion of38 percent,34 percent and30 percent, respectively. The information transmission, software and information technology service industry was among the top three industries in four cities, with20 percent of the institutions from Zhongshan involved in this industry. The chemical materials and chemical product manufacturing industry was among the top three industries in three cities, and24 percent of the institutions from Zhaoqing belonged to this industry.

Guangzhou had the largest number of universities and colleges with a proportion of24 percent;20 percent of the universities and colleges were located in Hong Kong and Macao,10 percent from Shenzhen and6 percent from Dongguan.

The rubber and plastic product industry was among the top three industries in the Hong Kong-Macao region. Macao has a dominant business service industry, with50 percent of innovation institutions of this category coming from Macao. Guangzhou is a leader in the scientific research and technical service industry with a proportion of16 percent; this industry did not enter the list of top three industries in other cities.

3.5.3 Performance of traditional industries and new industries 

The following descriptions enable an in-depth study on the performances of traditional industries, new industries and institutions that provide research intelligence supports in the west coast cities, east coast cities and the Hong Kong-Macao region. Please also refer to the graphics for details.

(1) There are seven traditional industries, namely the chemical materials and chemical product manufacturing industry, the rubber and plastic product industry, the electricity and heating power production and supply industry, the textile, clothing and apparel industry, the transportation manufacturing industry, the special equipment manufacturing industry, and the general equipment manufacturing industry.

In three years from2014 to2016, traditional industries in the west coast cities created6,380 invention patents, of which over50 percent were from Guangzhou. Foshan ranked second with over1,000 invention patents from traditional industries. Zhongshan and Zhuhai ranked third and fourth.

Of the east coast cities, there were over6,330 invention patents. Shenzhen led other cities in the region and owned over70 percent of the patents, followed by Huizhou and Dongguan.

The Hong Kong-Macao region had nearly1,400 invention patents,99 percent from Hong Kong. In the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Hong Kong lagged behind Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Huizhou and ranked fourth in the number of invention patents from traditional industries in2014-2016.

(2) New industries include the computer, communications and other electronics equipment manufacturing industry and the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry.

In three years from2014 to2016, new industries created more than160,000 invention patents. More than131,000 patents were from the east coast cities, more than26,000 from the west coast cities and nearly3,000 from Hong Kong and Macao. Shenzhen and Dongguan in the east coast region owned126,000 invention patents; while of the west coast cities, Zhuhai, Foshan and Guangzhou jointly owned23,000 invention patents. Hong Kong and Macao owned comparatively less invention patents, and most patents were from Hong Kong.

(3) Research intelligence supports include the universities and colleges and the scientific research and technical service industry. In three years from2014 to2016, more than31,000 invention patents were created by these industries. More than21,000 patents were from the west coast cities, including about19,000 from Guangzhou. The east coast cities had8,000 patents from research intelligence supports, mostly owned by Shenzhen institutions. In Hong Kong and Macao, there were2,300 invention patents, most of which were from Hong Kong. The chart below shows that Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hong Kong owned most of the invention patents from research intelligence supports, with Guangzhou taking the lead because it has many universities and colleges.

4. Conclusion

Statistics reveals that the number of invention patents, PCT patents and DWPI patents from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area surpassed that from the San Francisco Bay Area, indicating that the former has become a new powerhouse of innovation. Well-established in such new industries as information technology, intelligent manufacturing and equipment manufacturing, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area will act on the late mover advantage to participate in global competition. However, it lags far behind the San Francisco Bay Area in terms of the quality of patents and still has a long way to go in technological innovation.

The east coast cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area boast a larger number of invention patents, PCT patents and DWPI patents than the west coast cities. While both regions have recorded a steady growth, the west coast cities grew faster in the past three years. Well-established in both traditional manufacturing and high-end advanced manufacturing, the Greater Bay Area has a good potential to become a global leading bay area. Strong in education and R&D though, the west coast cities, with the economy dominated by traditional manufacturing, are in urgent need of a structural upgrade. The east coast cities have advantages in high-end manufacturing, which is the driving force behind its innovative growth. Hong Kong and Macao, on the other hand, are strong in education, R&D and high-end service industries.

5. Forward vision

A city cluster is not simply grouping together a bunch of cities geographically close to each other. The thinking is to facilitate the free flow of resources towards efficiency, improve the connectivity of infrastructure, complete industrial chains and share public services by forging a close bond among the cities. Working in coordination will help bring out the scale effect, aggregation effect and synergy effect of the city cluster.

One of the world’s most vibrant city clusters, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area consists of11 cities, each with its own advantages: Guangzhou is strong in education and R&D; Shenzhen has high-tech industries; Dongguan, Foshan and their neighbors excel in advanced manufacturing; Hong Kong is a leader in finance and high-end service industries; Macao has commerce and service industries. It’s a natural choice for the cities to join efforts and seek innovative growth. Borrowing from the experience of other successful city clusters in bay areas around the world, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area will have to further their cooperation, conjure up new platforms and streamline their resources in finance, R&D, industries, talents and transportation in order to succeed.

5.1 Synergy in system 

We should explore the possible reform in policies and establish new types of cooperation platforms to guarantee the joint development of cities in the Greater Bay Area.

Unlike New York City, Tokyo and San Francisco, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is uniquely centered on“four cities, three customs territories and two different political systems.” It includes Hong Kong and Macao SARs, Shenzhen and Zhuhai SEZs, as well as Guangdong (China) Pilot Free Trade Zones in Nansha, Qianhai and Hengqin. Governed by different political systems and hailing from different cultural backgrounds, the cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area must cooperate by multidimensional mechanisms. Cities in the Pearl River Delta will borrow from the experience of Hong Kong and Macao to build an open economy and join in global competition by exploring possible reforms towards a modern legal administration following international practice. The cities need to create a pro-growth environment and build new technology, finance and human resource platforms to facilitate the free flow of talents, logistics, capital, information and technologies, so that they will compete against and also complement each other to achieve a win-win situation in economic growth.

With its legal system and thorough involvement in the international marketplace, Hong Kong can serve as a“super-connector” between other Greater Bay Area cities and the outside world, helping their companies and research institutes to explore new markets and introduce cutting-edge technologies from abroad.

5.2 Synergy in finance

We will make full use of Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hong Kong’s positions as financial centers to innovate and provide financial support for startups in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is home to three global financial centers (Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hong Kong), two stock exchanges (Hong Kong Stock Exchange and Shenzhen Stock Exchange) as well as headquarters and branch offices of many banks, insurance firms, securities companies and venture capital funds.

The most vibrant city cluster in today’s world, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area can draw on the experience of San Francisco Bay Area’s Silicon Valley, which is a binuclear center of innovative technologies and ecological funds. By fully realizing the functions of Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hong Kong as international financial centers, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area should attract an increasing number of venture capital funds, intermediary institutions and startup companies to build an ecological system of“tech and finance.” Borrowing from Hong Kong’s experience in developing its financial sectors, other cities in the area need to integrate into the international financial markets to provide funds for startups and build the area into an“innovative heights.” The opportunities of getting financial support and achieving fast expansion will attract a continuous influx of companies from home and abroad, which will in turn drive the fast and sustainable growth in the area.

5.3 Synergy in technological innovation

We will coordinate the R&D strengths and manufacturing capabilities in the area to facilitate the transformation of research results into productivity.

Of the innovative institutions in the11 cities in the Greater Bay Area, institutions of higher learning from Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macao ranked the top3, accounting for24 percent,20 percent and20 percent respectively of the total. This indicates that universities and colleges from the three cities are strong in research and innovation. Of all the innovative institutions in Guangzhou,16 percent fall into the category of scientific research and technological service industries. This figure and the number of higher learning institutions all bespeak Guangzhou’s strength in research and innovation. Shenzhen is another stronghold of innovation, with research institutes set up by globally known companies and prestigious universities home and abroad. Meanwhile, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area boasts the most mature industrial clusters, with complete industrial chains and quick response manufacturing capabilities.

During the process of synergistic development of the Greater Bay Area, we can make the best of the innovative power of universities and research institutions, as well as the manufacturing prowess of the Pearl River Delta to build an international science and technology innovation corridor along the axis of Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong. Aiming at an innovation-driven growth, we will push for the transformation of research results into productivity.

5.4 Synergy in industries

We will facilitate an innovation-driven structural reform and upgrade to enhance the area’s competitiveness, by building on the advantages of each city.

The power of a country or region lies in its industrial competitiveness. The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has powerful and profound manufacturing sectors. Innovative institutions contributed roughly a quarter (24 percent) of the top3 manufacturing sectors in Guangzhou. The percentage was70 percent for Shenzhen,64 percent for Zhuhai,46 percent for Foshan,56 percent for Huizhou,70 percent for Dongguan,68 percent for Zhongshan,62 percent for Jiangmen,56 percent for Zhaoqing,52 percent for Hong Kong and10 percent for Macao.

With the most advanced manufacturing sectors in the whole world, though, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has the weakness of a homogeneous structure in its industries. Computer, telecom and other electronic device manufacturing, electromechanics, and equipment manufacturing make the top3 list of innovative industries in nine cities, for whom homogeneous competition is inevitable. Some cities also have a bigger proportion of traditional industries, and are less competitive in new economy. We need to make good use of Guangzhou and Shenzhen’s advantages in science and technology, the financial power of Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macao’s advantage in high-end service industries, as well as the manufacturing power of Foshan, Dongguan, Zhuhai, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing. With scientific planning, we will draw on each city’s advantages, let innovation drive a structural upgrade and reform, and enhance the global competitiveness of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

5.5 Synergy in talents

We should explore new mechanisms for the cooperation in human resources and make the Greater Bay Area an”innovative talent heights” by fostering a startup-friendly environment.

The key to innovative development is talented people. All top-level bay areas in the world are homes to renowned universities that continuously provide intellectual support for their economic growth. Borrowing from the experience of the San Francisco Bay Area, we can explore new mechanisms for the synergy of talents. We can publish preferential policies to encourage high-end talents to work or start businesses in the area. We will make the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area an”innovative talent heights” by fostering a startup-friendly environment. Meanwhile, we can increase investment in universities, research institutes and startups, spending on their education and R&D to help them become world leading universities and research institutes. We will also focus on state-level research projects and cultivate talents with a global vision to build the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area into a top-level bay area.

5.6 Infrastructure interconnection and interworking 

We will build a highly efficient intercity transportation system and make the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area a quality living radius.

Convenient and efficient transportation facilities are a significant factor in the success of bay areas. The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has the biggest seaports in the world, including Shenzhen Port, Hong Kong Port and Guangzhou Port; it also has Dongguan Port, Zhuhai Port, Huizhou Port, Zhongshan Port and Jiangmen Port. Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Macao are international aviation hubs or the home cities of important airports. The total mileages and density of expressways in the Pearl River Delta have surpassed those of the New York City, Tokyo and Paris metropolitan areas. A convenient and speedy intercity rail network is under construction, centered on Guangzhou and covering all major cities in the area. In the foreseeable future, the Pearl River Delta will form a one-hour living radius centered on Guangzhou. The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, soon to be put into use, provides an express link between Hong Kong, Macao and cities on the west bank of the Pearl River. All these have made it possible to build a quality living radius in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, cutting the traveling time between the11 cities to within one hour and further unleashing the potentials for synergy growth in all cities. We will open wider and more convenient space for the coordinated development of various bay area cities.