CPPCC member: south China's Greater Bay Area is one of brightest global growth poles

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has evolved as one of the most promising growth poles not just in China but in a global context, after over five years of development, a member of China's national political advisory body said on Sunday.

Customs clearance is smoother, residents from the three regions share a closer bond, and they are more devoted to work, said O Lam, an official of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) and also a member of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

The key to improving market integration, O Lam said, is to incorporate rules as well as mechanisms. As an official responsible for municipal affairs in Macao, she said she feels keenly about the entry and exit of meat, vegetables and fruit, which concerns the security of not only food but also biological and ecological environments.

Cooperation in inspection and quarantine seems to be technical cooperation on the surface, but it actually serves as a microcosm of the integration and coordination of the three customs territories under the "One country, Two systems" framework in the Greater Bay Area, O Lam said.

She added that the intensity of this institutional integration reflects the warmth of people's livelihoods and the convergence of the Greater Bay Area's strengths, and records the speed of the development of Chinese modernization.

This year is a double celebration for the Macao SAR, marking the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the 25th anniversary of Macao's return to the motherland, O Lam noted.

In this dynamic year, more efforts will be made to actively construct the Greater Bay Area, dedicating solid achievements and remarkable performances to the anniversary, and continuing to promote the continuous advancement of Macao's dedication to the "One country, Two systems," she said.

(Cover: A view of the island of Hengqin in south China's Guangdong Province, January 3, 2023. /CFP)