100 years ago, the first batch of 50 Shandong compatriots crossed the ocean from Weihaiwei to Hong Kong, ushering in the " Lu police era" in Hong Kong history. This was the earliest and most direct connection between Shandong and Hong Kong in modern times.
After Hong Kong returned to the motherland, the relationship between Shandong and Hong Kong has entered a new stage. The exchanges and interactions between the two parties involve various fields and levels from economy to culture, from people's livelihood to education. With the rapid rise of in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the implementation of Shandong's strategic plan to create a new highland for opening up, both parties will usher in more exciting cooperation opportunities and will also leave a mark on inter-regional exchanges.
(Note: Shandong and Hong Kong continue to strengthen high-level exchanges. The picture shows relevant meetings between Shandong and Hong Kong during the 2018 Hong Kong Shandong Week.)
Sincerity: The breadth and depth of exchanges between the two places have continued to increase
In recent years, Shandong and Hong Kong have continued to Strengthening high-level exchanges and actively exploring complementary advantages, the breadth and depth of Shandong-Hong Kong exchanges and cooperation are constantly increasing.
On February 25, 2020, during the COVID-19 epidemic, Leung Chun-ying, Vice Chairman of the 13th CPPCC National Committee, attended the video signing ceremony of key foreign investment projects in Shandong Province in Hong Kong and delivered a speech. He said: "I hope that both parties will give full play to their respective advantages, complement each other, and achieve mutual benefit and win-win results. Shandong-Hong Kong cooperation will definitely usher in a better tomorrow."
In recent years, senior leaders of the Shandong Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government have visited Hong Kong many times to participate in Economic and trade exchange activities, Hong Kong SAR government senior officials also visited Shandong several times. Since 2009, Shandong has held ten consecutive "Hong Kong Shandong Week" events in Hong Kong. This has become a grand event that showcases the comparative advantages of Shandong and Hong Kong, creating a strong open atmosphere and a distinct open orientation.
In 2018 and 2020, Shandong held two Confucian Business Conferences, inviting thousands of people from all walks of life at home and abroad to discuss Confucianism and nostalgia and discuss development plans. The second conference specially set up an online promotion event for Shandong-Hong Kong cooperation. In 2020, in the face of the sudden COVID-19 epidemic, Shandong helped Hong Kong-funded enterprises implement epidemic prevention safety measures and resume work and production, helped relevant enterprises solve problems, and enabled Hong Kong-funded enterprises above designated size to take the lead in resuming work and production to 100%.
In March 2021, Shandong launched nine policies and measures to deepen exchanges and cooperation with Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, support Hong Kong financial institutions to set up branches in Shandong, invest in local financial institutions, support Hong Kong-funded enterprises to participate in the mixed ownership reform of Shandong state-owned enterprises, and support Hong Kong-funded enterprises have invested in setting up elderly care institutions in Shandong. The deep sincerity shown by Shandong has received positive responses from many enterprises in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong is one of the most economically dynamic regions in Asia and even the world. It is an international financial center, shipping center, trade center, and international legal and dispute resolution service center in the Asia-Pacific region. It is currently working hard to develop an innovation and technology center, aviation hub, There are four new fields: the Chinese and foreign cultural and artistic exchange center and the regional intellectual property trade center. Shandong has obvious geographical advantages, a complete industrial system, a huge market, and sufficient human resources. The comparative advantages of both sides are highly complementary, and exchanges and cooperation are booming.
(Note: In 2003, Luqi Weiqiao Textile was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Picture provided by Weiqiao Group)
Win-win situation: seize opportunities for economic and trade cooperation
After decades of accumulation, as of 2021, Shandong Province There are 5,322 Hong Kong-invested enterprises, with actual use of Hong Kong capital of US$65.96 billion, accounting for 61.3% of the province's utilized foreign capital. These enterprises have taken root in Qilu and have grown together. From the perspective of investment direction, Hong Kong enterprise investment has gradually shifted from traditional fields such as real estate and manufacturing to emerging fields such as finance and high-tech.
The Hong Kong capital market has always been an important channel for Shandong enterprises to enter the international market. In 1993, Tsingtao Beer created a milestone as the first mainland company to be listed in Hong Kong, thus kicking off the overseas listing of mainland companies. In 2016, the Shandong Provincial Finance Office and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange jointly held the "Hong Kong Stock Exchange Business Promotion Conference" in Jinan. The Shandong Provincial Government signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and the cooperation between the two parties entered a new stage.As of June 8, 58 Shandong companies have been listed in Hong Kong, building a "Shandong sector" with considerable scale and influence in the Hong Kong capital market.
Take Luqi Weiqiao Group as an example. The group's industries mainly include textile and aluminum and electricity sectors. Among them, Weiqiao Textile, a subsidiary of the textile sector, and China Hongqiao, an affiliated company of the aluminum and electricity sector, were established in Hong Kong in 2003 and 2011 respectively. Listed. Huang Pingyi, deputy general manager of Weiqiao Group, said that Hong Kong is a free trade port with a very convenient financing environment and an international operating platform that allows companies to continuously improve their competitiveness.
Today, with the support of a series of policies and measures from the central government, Hong Kong, which has integrated into the overall development of the country, is ushering in new and greater development opportunities. Shandong is also seizing major opportunities such as the joint construction of the “Belt and Road” and the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and is actively investing and contracting projects in Hong Kong. In 2020, the number of new Hong Kong-invested enterprises in Shandong reached 1,230, a year-on-year increase of 35%.
(Shandong continues to promote the construction of the "vegetable basket" production base in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Photo courtesy of the Lanling County Party Committee Propaganda Department)
Warmth: People's livelihood support demonstrates deep friendship
"Shared development, improving people's livelihood" is the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area development plan One of the six basic principles proposed by Outline . Over the years, Shandong and Hong Kong have had close exchanges in people's livelihood security and social governance: from "vegetable basket" to "medicine box", from "Shandong police" to talent exchanges in various industries, people's livelihood support demonstrates the deep friendship between the two places.
Shandong is a major agricultural province. In 2021, agricultural product exports reached 123.84 billion yuan, accounting for nearly a quarter of the country's total, ranking first in the country for 23 consecutive years. Take Yangxin County in Binzhou City as an example. It is known as "China's No. 1 Cow County" and was recognized as the "vegetable basket" production base of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in 2019. In Yangxin , the beef cattle are slaughtered and loaded into cold chain logistics vehicles. The meat products will arrive in Shenzhen within 30 hours, and then sent to the Hong Kong retail market after being transferred.
Currently, Shandong is integrating and developing a "vegetable basket" standard system for the entire industry chain in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, demonstrating and promoting new standards, new facilities, and new technologies for modern agriculture, supporting the export of independent brands, and cultivating a group of influential, A leading company that is familiar with international rules.
Shandong Traditional Chinese Medicine has a long history of development, numerous famous doctors, and rich resources. It is the preferred partner of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in “shaping a healthy bay area”. Lugang's exchanges and cooperation in the fields of traditional Chinese medicine, biomedicine and other fields have improved the development level of related industries on both sides and also contributed to their internationalization.
Since the first batch of 50 Shandong compatriots went to Hong Kong to engage in police work 100 years ago, now about one-fifth of the Hong Kong police force are descendants of Shandong people. After the reform and opening up, more and more people from Shandong went to Hong Kong to engage in various jobs. Statistics show that in 2020, Shandong sent 64,000 laborers of various types to Hong Kong, making important contributions to local economic construction and social development.
(Note: During the 2021 Shandong-Hong Kong Economic Cooperation Fair, talent exchange is a key task. Photo provided by the Zibo Municipal Government Information Office)
Opening up: Humanities exchanges bloom with vitality
The pre-Qin scholars were half out of Qilu, and Shandong is a Confucian, The birthplace of many cultures including Mohism and Bing, it is an important source of Chinese culture. A survey conducted by the Shandong Provincial Government and Hong Kong media showed that among Hong Kong people’s impressions of Shandong, Confucius ranked first in the character series. This on the one hand confirms the recognition of Hong Kong compatriots on Confucian culture and on the other hand. On the one hand, it also shows that "Cultural Shandong" is an important image symbol of Shandong in Hong Kong and Macao.
In recent years, people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two places have been deepening. For example, in the "One Heart, Same Root" event held in 2019, more than 300 young people from Hong Kong visited and studied in Qufu, Taian, Qingdao and other places, and learned about Qilu culture, Confucianism Culture has a more realistic understanding.
In 2019, the Hong Kong SAR Government also co-organized the Shandong Qingdao Marine Science Hong Kong Youth Internship Activity with the Shandong Provincial Government. Hong Kong college students successfully completed internships at the Qingdao Marine Science and Technology Pilot National Laboratory, relevant universities, and maritime-related institutes, which was unanimously received by both parties. Good reviews.In addition, non-governmental organizations in Hong Kong also organize exchange and study tours for Hong Kong youth to Shandong to help them broaden their horizons, understand the national conditions, and deepen their understanding of the mainland job market. It is reported that there are currently nearly 200 Hong Kong students studying in Shandong.
Shandong also increased its cultural experience and exchanges with Hong Kong during the same period. It successively held Shandong Cultural Exchange Week and other activities, and established sister schools. Its influence in Hong Kong continued to expand, and it effectively promoted the rich Qilu culture.
As time flies, Shandong and Hong Kong have formed profound historical roots and cooperative friendship. After years of consolidation and development, exchanges and cooperation between the two places have flourished and yielded fruitful results, leaving a strong mark on inter-regional exchanges.
(Contributed by: Liaison Office of the Hong Kong SAR Government in Shandong, Hong Kong Commercial Daily)
