Guangdong Governor Huang Huahua (left) and Chief Executive Donald Tsang at a news conference of the 8th Plenary of the Hong Kong-Guangdong Co-operation Joint Conference yesterday. Earlier the two led their own delegations (below) to explore their common ground on many issues, including food safety, logistic and financial services, trade and industries.

Top officials in Guangdong and Hong Kong yesterday agreed to raise their cooperation to a strategic height of significance, not only to the two neighbours but also to other members of the Pan-Pearl River Delta (PRD) and the country as a whole.

Meeting the press together with Chief Executive Donald Tsang after the eighth plenary meeting of the Hong Kong/Guangdong Cooperation Joint Conference, Guangdong Governor Huang Huahua said the central government had attached great importance to the meeting.

Huang said the concern was evident in the presence of two central government officials at the meeting, namely Chen Zuo'er, executive vice-minister of the State Council's Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, and Guo Li, deputy director of the central government's Liaison Office in the SAR.

Huang said the unprecedented visit to the PRD by Hong Kong's legislators had laid a "good foundation" for the meeting for a better understanding of Guangdong and the mainland among the legislators would benefit further cooperation between the SAR and the province.

According to the press statement issued after the meeting, both sides have agreed to work more closely in 10 major areas, covering food safety, cross-border traffic, pan-PRD cooperation, environmental protection, information, technology, infrastructure, education, business support, and trade promotion.

Food safety, Tsang said, was new to the agenda. He hoped stepped-up cooperation with Guangdong would prevent future incidents over food safety from escalating into a public panic as seen recently in the pork and freshwater fish supplies.

LegCo tour's effect

Speaking at the start of the meeting yesterday, Tsang said the legislators' visit to the PRD was successful. "Its effects lead to better communications between the Legislative Council (LegCo) and the mainland as well as deeper understanding of Guangdong/SAR cooperation."

"I can appreciate that we cannot confine our cooperation to topics of local concern but should raise it to a higher level to take into account the wider interests of the pan-PRD and national development as a whole," Tsang said.

From this height, he said, it would not be difficult for both sides to discover greater room for lasting cooperation. The legislators' visit to the PRD on Sunday and Monday, he said, was "thought-provoking".

At the meeting, the SAR and Guangdong governments agreed to deepen their cooperation with a view to radiating the effects across the pan-PRD region.

First, both sides will study the planning and infrastructure development in the pan-PRD. Second, they will promote the region overseas. Tsang and Huang will lead a delegation with members from both sides to Vancouver and San Francisco mid-next month to meet overseas investors to drive home the pan-PRD concept.

Meanwhile, they have also agreed to promote financial services cooperation in the pan-PRD through organizing a financial services forum for pan-PRD members in the coming year.

"We will intensify our efforts to radiate the effects to the hinterland," Tsang said, making use of the occasion to call on critics to appreciate that, for instance, the planning of the high-speed railway link between the SAR, Shenzhen and Guangzhou should also not be limited to the three cities.

It should rather be aimed at extending to the west and the north with the backing of a major interchange in Guangzhou, he said.

Specific points of agreement

In a nutshell, the joint conference has, among others, agreed that:

Cross-border traffic: Guangdong's requirement of "one-truck-one-driver" will be eased with immediate effect so that every cross-border freight vehicle may engage a driver and a back-up driver whereas the back-up drivers recruited by the same company may drive any cross-border freight vehicle operated by the company.

Moreover, the duration of joint-venture contract of cross-border vehicles will be extended from three to six years. The measures are aimed at facilitating cross-border freight transportation further.

Environmental protection: Air quality index for the PRD region will be released daily by the end of this year so that residents on both sides of the border will know the air quality in the PRD. A water quality model for the Pearl River Estuary will be developed early next year to provide a scientific basis for the next phase of improvement.

Information: Guangdong and the SAR will set up a task force to foster synergy among the software industries in both places, whereas in technology, they will scale up a funding scheme started in 2004 to support more research and development projects.

Western Corridor: Tsang said the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Corridor would be completed by the end of 2006 and the feasibility study of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge had largely been completed with the findings being reviewed by the three sides.

Greater PRD: The two sides will also go ahead with the "Planning Study on Coordinated Development in the Greater PRD Township" shortly after agreeing on the framework and direction of the study at the conference.

Editor: Yan