Raymond So writes that Hong Kong should take more interest in the latest development plan because it outlines HK's position over the next five years

Last week, Premier Li Keqiang delivered his work report at the National People's Congress. He also unveiled highlights of the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) put forward by the National Development and Reform Commission. Of course, Hong Kong and Macao were included in separate chapters, which discussed future strategies for the Hong Kong and Macao SARs in the context of national development.

Because of its significance, the 13th Five-Year Plan - which outlines the general direction of national development for the next five years - clearly deserves a closer look. The contents of the plan represent various policy initiatives and support measures. In the development of the mainland's economy, such policy support is very important. It is not surprising to see that many provinces and cities are extremely concerned about their role in the latest five-year plan. In drafting the plan, the addition or deletion of a single word can have tremendous implications. The plan's significance naturally attracts people who are genuinely interested in the development of China. Yet, Hong Kong society now seems to focus too much on local issues. It is not paying enough attention to the latest five-year plan. Hong Kong's media have reported on it, but the length and depth of such media coverage has been far from satisfactory.

By contrast, five years ago when the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15) was being drafted, there was great interest in it among Hong Kong residents. Indeed, at the time, there were many forums and seminars on the city's role in the plan.

Why the change this time? It seems to me that there have been tremendous changes in Hong Kong over the past five years - in particular, the rise of local issues that has distracted Hong Kong residents away from focusing on the 13th Five Year Plan. In recent years, local consciousness has attracted considerable interest - particularly from young people. While this doesn't really fit with Hong Kong's unique environment, such narrow thinking has gained support among some young people. Some people, preoccupied by this way of thinking, wrongly believe the latest five-year plan is about the mainland's overall development strategy and does not have much to do with Hong Kong. Even though there are separate paragraphs specifically discussing Hong Kong's role, many people obviously overlooked these. They neglected to take notice of many significant things in the five-year plan. The media naturally focused too much on narrow local issues and also failed to take the plan seriously.

But if we look at Hong Kong's role in the latest five-year plan, it is easy to see the direction Hong Kong's development will take along with national development in the next five years. It has been made clear that international finance, shipping and trade will still be the major focuses of Hong Kong's economic development. This direction is actually the same as outlined in the 12th Five-Year Plan. This means that Hong Kong has been doing well in these economic areas in the past five years. The central government will therefore continue to support Hong Kong in these areas in the next five years. We need to bear in mind that international finance, shipping and trade are high value-added industries; many cities are aspiring to be leaders in these sectors. But it also shows that Hong Kong still maintains a comparative advantage in these areas. I believe the SAR government will make more effort when it comes to developing these areas. More investment in human resources in these sectors can also be expected.

The 12th Five-Year Plan also mentioned that the central government would support the development of Hong Kong as a global hub for offshore RMB business - as well as being an international asset management center. In the 13th Five-Year Plan, Beijing pledged it would not only support but also strengthen these functions in Hong Kong. In fact, the SAR has evolved into a hub for both offshore RMB business and international asset management. This is an achievement unmatched by any other international financial centers. Under the 13th Five-Year Plan, more efforts will be made to strengthen Hong Kong's position as China's largest, most important international financial center.

(HK Edition 03/10/2016 page10)