The Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area proposed to “develop an industry cooperation zone for in-depth collaboration between Hong Kong and Guangdong in Nansha of Guangzhou”.

Initiated by Mr Leung Chun-ying, the vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, the Guangzhou Municipal Government established the Consultative Committee on Guangdong-Hong Kong Co-operation (Guangzhou Nansha) (also known as the CCGHKC) in April 2021.

The CCGHKC is a high-level decision-making consulting organization dedicated to the development, opening up and construction management of the Guangdong-Hong Kong industry cooperation zone. Adopting an effective advisory committee operation model similar to the system of Hong Kong, all appointed CCGHKC members are leaders, scholars or professionals from different fields of expertise. They offer free consultation as well as to provide forward-looking, practical ideas and suggestions that enhance the collaboration between Guangdong and Hong Kong.

The CCGHKC is formed by an advisor, a committee director, 2 deputy directors and 33 committee members. It has its own secretariat and a Hong Kong Station to provide necessary support. Currently, there are 14 working groups under the CCGHKC, including the Financial Cooperation; Business Cooperation; Science and Technology Cooperation; Land Use Planning and Development; Information Technology and Data Interchange; Professional Services; Policy Research; Youth Matter; Publicity and Communications; Education; Legal Services; Tourism; Healthcare; and Transportation. The working groups operate on a “dual-leader” system, each side has a group leader to lead members from Hong Kong and Nansha respectively to promote effective cooperation. Since the establishment of the CCGHKC in April 2021, the working groups have already commenced advisory works and discussions in areas of land use planning, business & finance cooperation, education, and data connectivity.