Xia Baolong wraps up four-day visit to Hengqin and Zhuhai

Xia Baolong, mainland China’s most senior official in Hong Kong and Macao, carried out an inspection tour in Hengqin and Zhuhai between 1 and 4 June, with the trip focused on helping them align more closely with China’s 15th five-year plan – the nation’s blueprint for economic development from 2026 to 2030. 

According to an official statement published yesterday, the fact-finding tour was also aimed at deepening Macao’s participation in the Greater Bay Area’s (GBA) development and supporting the two cities’ “integration and service of China’s overall development strategy.” 

During his four-day trip, the director of the State Council’s Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office visited various sites such as the Macau International Airport’s future Hengqin upstream cargo terminal, which is slated to open in the first half of 2027. 

Xia also toured a number of tertiary institutions, including phase one of the Macau-Hengqin International Education (University) Town, City University of Macau’s Advanced Research Institute (Hengqin) and the Macau University of Science and Technology Innovation Technology Research Institute.  

The 20-billion-pataca university town was one of the major infrastructure projects mentioned by Macao’s Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai during his policy address last year, and will serve as a mainland Chinese base of operations for a number of SAR universities such as the University of Macao, Macao Polytechnic University and Macao University of Tourism. 

The official visited a variety of academic institutions and firms as well, including the Guangdong Institute of Intelligence Science and Technology, pharmaceutical research company Zhuhai Smilebiotek, Hengqin International Film and Television City, manufacturing and semiconductor equipment company Silicool Tech, the GBA Low-Altitude Research Institute (Guangdong) Company, the Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai) and the GBA branch of the National Local Chronicles Museum in Zhuhai. 

[See more: Hengqin at 5: A policy project or a genuine second home?]

Photos published show Xia being shown a humanoid robot and a drone, in addition to receiving talks about the various locations he was visiting. 

He was accompanied by Sam and other officials such as the executive deputy director of the Hong and Macao Affairs Office, Xu Qifang and the director of the Macau Liaison Office Zheng Xincong. 

The current trip marks Xia’s third visit to the GBA this year. His first inspection took place between 23 and 27 March, with a visit to Guangzhou, Zhaoqing and Foshan. This was followed by a second trip to Shenzhen, Dongguan and Huizhou between 7 and 10 April. 

Regarding Xia’s regular GBA visits, Lau Siu-kai of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau studies, told the South China Morning Post that it indicated mainland China’s desire for development in the region and Hengqin to be sped up. 

The central government has been pushing for greater integration between Macao and Hengqin in recent years in order to further boost the former’s development and diversify its economy away from its overreliance on gambling. 

In his 2024 address in Macao, Chinese President Xi Jinping stated that Hengqin’s development must align with the goals of economic diversification and supporting Macao, pointing out that “sectors and projects that are not in line with this purpose should not be developed.”