The 29th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region coincided with the 105th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China. The pairing is more than a calendar coincidence. It offers a timely moment to consider not only how the SAR has changed over nearly three decades, but also where it intends to go next.
Much of the public discussion surrounding these anniversaries has centered on familiar themes. Stability. National development. Integration. The continued implementation of the “one country, two systems” policy.
Of course, these themes matter. Yet they point to a practical question that also deserves great attention. What should Hong Kong actually do with the opportunities that political stability is intended to create?
For years, Hong Kong has excelled at responding to change. It has been remarkably resilient through financial crises, epidemics, geopolitical tensions, and profound political transformation. Resilience, however, is not the same as strategy. Surviving disruptions does not automatically produce a vision for the future. That is why the city’s first comprehensive five-year development plan may ultimately prove more significant than many realize.
For decades, Hong Kong relied on an approach built around annual Policy Addresses and yearly budgets. The system prized flexibility and market responsiveness. It reflected the city’s tradition of limited government intervention and confidence that market forces would allocate resources efficiently. That model served Hong Kong well during a different era. But today’s challenges are fundamentally different.
Artificial intelligence is reshaping industries. Global supply chains are being reorganized. Competition for talent has become international. Populations are aging across developed economies. Climate transition is altering investment priorities. Meanwhile, technological rivalry between major powers has introduced a level of geopolitical uncertainty that few businesses can afford to ignore. None of these issues can be addressed through one-year budget cycles or isolated policy initiatives. They require continuity, coordination and long-term thinking.
Planning, contrary to popular stereotypes, is not the opposite of markets. The world’s most-competitive economies often combine entrepreneurial energy with strategic direction. Governments establish infrastructure, invest in education, coordinate research, create regulatory certainty, and allow businesses to innovate within that framework. Successful planning is less about controlling markets than about giving markets confidence.
The Chinese mainland’s repeated use of multiyear national development plans reflects this philosophy. Whether one agrees with every policy is beside the point. The broader lesson is that sustained economic transformation rarely happens without clear priorities that extend beyond election cycles or annual fiscal announcements. Hong Kong now has an opportunity to adapt that principle to its own institutional strengths.
The objective should not be to imitate the mainland’s governance model. Hong Kong’s greatest advantage lies precisely in its uniqueness. Its common law system, internationally recognized financial markets, professional-services sector, and global business networks are assets that few other Chinese cities can replicate. These characteristics are not obstacles to national development. They are contributions to it.
As the SAR reflects on its 29-year journey, along with the celebration of the CPC’s 105th anniversary, the more meaningful question is not what the city has accomplished, but what comes next. … If its first five-year development plan succeeds in combining strategic vision with its enduring international strengths, these anniversaries may be remembered not simply as milestones of the past, but as the beginning of a more purposeful future
Much has been written about Hong Kong serving as a bridge between the mainland and the broader world. The phrase has become so familiar that it risks sounding like a slogan rather than a strategy. Yet the underlying idea remains relevant.
As geopolitical fragmentation deepens, connecting different legal systems, financial standards and commercial cultures becomes more valuable, not less. International investors still need trusted intermediaries. Chinese companies expanding abroad require sophisticated legal, financial and advisory services. Global firms seeking opportunities on the mainland continue to value jurisdictions that understand both international markets and Chinese realities.
Hong Kong occupies a uniquely positioned intersection of these worlds. The challenge is ensuring that this comparative advantage evolves rather than simply survives. This is where long-term planning becomes essential. A credible development blueprint should extend well beyond infrastructure projects or headline investment figures. It should articulate how education, innovation, housing, healthcare, technology and labor markets reinforce one another.
Talent cannot flourish without affordable housing. Innovation ecosystems cannot thrive without universities that collaborate closely with industry. Economic competitiveness depends as much on human capital as it does on physical infrastructure.
The Northern Metropolis project illustrates this interconnected challenge. It is frequently described by some people as a land development project. In reality, its success will depend far less on buildings than on whether it creates an environment where universities, research institutions, technology companies and entrepreneurs genuinely interact. Concrete alone does not generate innovation. Institutions do.
Education therefore deserves to occupy a central place in Hong Kong’s long-term planning. Preparing students for an economy increasingly shaped by AI, advanced manufacturing, biotechnology and digital finance requires more than curriculum reform. It requires sustained coordination between schools, universities, employers and policymakers.
Economic success ultimately means little if ordinary families struggle with housing affordability, limited social mobility or declining opportunities for younger generations. Growth should never become an abstract statistic measured solely through gross domestic product or stock market performance. Political stability should not be viewed as the destination. It is the foundation upon which more ambitious goals can be pursued.
As the SAR reflects on its 29-year journey, along with the celebration of the CPC’s 105th anniversary, the more meaningful question is not what the city has accomplished, but what comes next. The coming years will determine whether Hong Kong can move beyond managing events to shaping them. If its first five-year development plan succeeds in combining strategic vision with its enduring international strengths, these anniversaries may be remembered not simply as milestones of the past, but as the beginning of a more purposeful future.
The author is chairman of the Asia MarTech Society and sits on the advisory boards of several professional organizations, including two universities.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.