Briefs | 4,000 young participants to tour Greater Bay Area cities

A group of around 4,000 young people from Greater Bay Area will visit three Chinese mainland cities within the region this weekend, on September 21 and 22. The group, organized by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Youth Association, will set out from Hong Kong for Guangzhou, Foshan and Jiangmen via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge. During the two-day trip, the participants will experience local life and visit well-known local enterprises, according to state media Xinhua. The activity aims to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, enhance Hong Kong and Macau young people’s understanding of the development of the country, and promote communication among young people in the region, the organizing association said. “The Greater Bay Area prepares vast space and opportunities for Hong Kong youngsters to explore. We hope to provide a platform where young people from both Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland can exchange views and understand more,” said Angus Ng, chairman of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Youth Association.

Guangdong customs seize smuggled bird’s nests

Customs police in southern China’s Guangdong Province has detained 11 suspects who allegedly smuggled edible bird’s nests. Around 620 kilograms of bird’s nests, which are highly prized due to their nutritional value, were seized in an operation last week by customs police and public security departments in the Tier-1 cities of Guangzhou and Shenzhen. According to customs, more than 2 million yuan (about $280,000) involved in the case was frozen and several smuggling gangs were busted. Customs police said buyers had purchased bird’s nests in Indonesia and Malaysia in April 2017, and gangs had later smuggled the nests into China for profiteering.

Guangzhou to establish innovation platforms with Hong Kong, Macau

More than 10 collaborative innovation platforms have been planned to be built in Guangzhou by 2021, with assistance from Hong Kong and Macau, local authorities said, according to state media Xinhua. In the next three years, Guangzhou will set an overall goal to build the international innovation and technology hub, and the comprehensive national science center in the Greater Bay Area. Besides, Guangzhou will join hands with over 25 partners such as global universities and scientific research institutions, and build over 60 international scientific and technological cooperation bases by the end of 2021, according to the Guangzhou municipal science and technology bureau. A series of measures, both financial and administrative, will be taken to boost such cooperation. Collaborative innovation platforms will be established to encourage the industry-university-research cooperation among enterprises, universities, hospitals and institutes, the bureau said. Guangzhou is also exploring the prospect of building a special science and technology cooperation zone in its Nansha District as a demonstrative base for inland, Hong Kong and Macau interaction. Chinese authorities in February 2019 unveiled the outline development plan for the Greater Bay Area, aiming to develop the region into a hub of high-quality development.