Secretary for Transport & Logistics Mable Chan today briefed members of Guangxi’s transport and logistics trade on developments in the sector in Hong Kong as she led a delegation in visiting the region.

The delegation includes members of the Hong Kong Logistics Development Council and representatives from Hong Kong Customs and the Marine Department.

Speaking at a Guangxi-Hong Kong seminar on transport and logistics this morning, Ms Chan said that Hong Kong serves as a prominent bridge connecting the nation to the global market, while Guangxi is an important channel for exchanges with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and also a key node under the Belt & Road Initiative.

Hong Kong and Guangxi signed the Framework Agreement on Deepening Strategic Co-operation for the Guangxi-Hong Kong Task Force on Transport & Logistics last year, and Ms Chan sad it opened up greater room for co-operation between the two places in the areas of transportation and logistics.

Ms Chan and the delegation later visited the Nanning International Railway Port and the China-Singapore Nanning International Logistics Park.

She highlighted that this is her first official trip outside of Hong Kong since assuming the office of the Secretary for Transport & Logistics, and also the council’s first visit to the Mainland since the pandemic. This, she said, underscored the high value placed on logistics and maritime collaboration between Hong Kong and Guangxi.

Ms Chan outlined that as an international maritime, aviation and logistics hub, Hong Kong is privileged to enjoy the institutional advantage of being part of China but outside the Mainland.

Since the commissioning of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, she said, the driving distance between Hong Kong and Guangxi has been shortened. She added that the commissioning of the Three-Runway System at Hong Kong International Airport, which enhances the city’s air cargo capacity, means Hong Kong can better leverage its extensive aviation network, allowing goods from Mainland locations such as Guangxi to be more readily exported to various overseas destinations.

She also noted that the development of the Guangxi Beibu Gulf, arising from efforts to build a “New Land-Sea Corridor for Western Regions”, has been rapid. She stressed that as an international maritime centre, Hong Kong's shipping routes can provide highly efficient and convenient transit services for goods transferring to and from the Beibu Gulf.

Upon her arrival in Nanning yesterday evening, Ms Chan met Executive Vice Chairman of the People’s Government of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Xu Yongke, to discuss ways of strengthening maritime and logistics collaboration between Hong Kong and Guangxi.