Shenzhen launches ‘one-stop shop’ to help foreign talent work at Hetao cooperation zone

The Hetao cooperation zone, which was first proposed by Beijing in 2017, straddles two sections covering a total of nearly 4 square kilometres in the boundary between Shenzhen and Hong Kong. These two sections are separated by the Shenzhen River.

Over the past year, the zone has achieved initial results that include luring China’s labs to set up branches there, according to Zeng Jianpeng, director general of the Hetao cooperation zone.

The latest initiative by the Shenzhen side of the Hetao cooperation zone reflects heightened efforts to develop leading research clusters in the area by 2035, as part of the plan laid out by the State Council in August last year.

With the influx of foreign talent, more institutions such as the University of Hong Kong (HKU) plan to make a deeper push into the zone.

“HKU is looking forward to the rapid development of Hetao and we are actively preparing for multiple research platforms in the area and in Shenzhen,” Yin Xiaobo, a professor and associate vice-president at the university, said on Wednesday during the service station’s launch. “This is the most important direction of development for us.”