Hong Kong is trying to rescue its "frozen" tourism industry by relying on the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and exploring more of this sector, said Dane Cheng, executive director of Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB).

The tourism industry in the Special Administrative Region employs about 800,000 people and directly contributes to 5 percent of Hong Kong's GDP. But the current status of this industry can be described as "frozen," said Cheng in an interview with China Media Group.

"Hong Kong is a small place. In the past, we relied heavily on tourists who visited. The number of tourists could reach 200,000 a day, but now we only have about 300 tourists a day, so the current situation is very bad."

Hong Kong is now seeking international cooperation and enhancing connections with the tourism industry in the Chinese mainland.

By relying on the strategy of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Hong Kong can still play its role as an international shipping hub and exert synergies in the area, Cheng said.

Amid the pandemic, we understand that the Greater Bay Area can bring us good business opportunities. More overseas tourists can visit Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Macao, and Hong Kong, he said.

Hong Kong is also establishing cooperation projects with other partners. The "travel bubble" project jointly launched by Hong Kong and Singapore, for example, allows eligible travelers to enjoy two-way, quarantine-free travel after the COVID-19 test.

Read more: 

Hong Kong tourist visits fall by about a third amid ongoing protests

Hong Kong's total visitor arrivals in 2019 decline by 14.2 percent

Visitor arrivals to Hong Kong slump nearly 100% in April

Hong Kong launches campaign with VR experiences globally to revive local tourism