Like Shenzhen, the Northern Metropolis is animated by the spirit of experimentation

At the heart of Hong Kong’s first five-year plan lies the Northern Metropolis – a massive tract of land spanning roughly a third of our entire city. Much ink has been spilled over what this project represents and why it matters, but if I had to summarise it in a single sentence, I would call it the “Shenzhen of Hong Kong”.

To me, Shenzhen stands as the most miraculous growth story on Earth. Forty-eight years ago, it was a sleepy fishing village with a single muddy main road and just tens of thousands of residents. Today, it is the undisputed tech capital of China and one of the world’s premier innovation hubs.

While the exact circumstances, history and status of Hong Kong and Shenzhen differ, both the Northern Metropolis and Shenzhen stem from the very same strain of Chinese political thinking – one that is frequently overlooked and misunderstood by the outside world.