It is only natural that the multi-billion-dollar Northern Metropolis (NM) development should anchor Hong Kong’s first Five-Year Plan. After all, the NM will be able to house 2.5 million people and create some 650,000 jobs in 2036. It is a key component in Hong Kong’s future.
The NM blueprint maps out the development of one third of Hong Kong’s land mass for the next eight years and can easily be dovetailed in the Five-Year Plan as well as being integrated into the mainland’s 15th Five-Year Plan.
The NM is moving at an ever-accelerating pace with more than 60 firms having moved into the first two buildings in the Phase 1 development of the San Tin Technopole, the centrepiece of the entire project. The infrastructure is already well in place: drainage has been laid, internal roads built with slip roads connecting to the main highway, electricity has been connected and buildings are sprouting like stalagmites while construction cranes dot the skyline. The area is a hive of activity.
Earlier this week, the government opened the two-month consultation period for the public to comment on how Hong Kong should look in the next five years. It is strategic, forward-looking, and operable. Its purpose is to strengthen Hong Kong’s position as an international financial, maritime, and trade centre. The road map will also help drive growth for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Livelihood issues such as healthcare, education, housing, social welfare, elderly care, etc. will also be covered in the Five-Year Plan.
The Plan is another tool to complement Hong Kong’s annual budget and the chief executive’s policy address. The annual policy address and budget would serve to advance the goals and visions of the plan, which aim to align with Beijing’s blueprint guiding the country’s development from 2026 to 2030.
The Government strives to publish the formal document of Hong Kong's Five-Year Plan within the third quarter of the year.
The overview of the document is divided into six sections, containing 95 bullet points outlining initiatives under 29 policy directions and key proposals:
The first part covers the NM, collecting views on policy tools and areas in which Hong Kong holds the greatest strengths. It sets a target of delivering more than 70,000 flats and 1 million square metres of floor space for economic activities over the next five years. To achieve this, the government is proposing several models to stimulate market interest, including “large-scale land disposal”, establishing an “industry park company,” and a “pay for what you build” scheme.
The second section sets out directions such as building an “internationally competitive low-altitude economy ecosystem” and a “commodities trading ecosystem” to expand cross-boundary financing for mainland enterprises.
The third part outlines plans to deepen AI+ initiatives and transform the city into a health and medical innovation hub.
For livelihood issues, the fourth section includes a commitment to “eradicate substandard subdivided units in an orderly manner” through the new “basic housing unit” regime. It also focuses on addressing the pressures of an ageing society and changes in labour supply.
The fifth and six sections cover areas of regional cooperation, the integrated development of culture, sports and tourism, and green living.
Chief Executive John Lee has noted that the Five-Year Plan aims to strengthen Hong Kong’s core sectors—including finance, shipping, trade, and technology—while accelerating projects such as the international aviation hub, a talent hub, and the Northern Metropolis development.
Leveraging the city's unique strength, Lee said Hong Kong will serve as a bridge connecting the mainland and the world, driving high-quality development and allowing citizens to benefit from the city’s growth.
The plan will help Hong Kong seize more strategic opportunities, allowing the city to further strengthen the integration of the Greater Bay Area through regional cooperation, transforming Hong Kong from a traditional "super-connector" into a "functional value-added hub" for the country.'
Mark Pinkstone
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Next month, on September 3, the world will celebrate Skyscraper Day when Hong Kong is expected to be crowned, again, as the city having the most skyscrapers. According to the Chicago-based Council on Vertical Urbanization, Hong Kong has 596 skyscrapers over 150 meters in height.
The city has been forced to build vertically due to its small land area and dense population and its skyline is among the most renowned in the world thanks to its robust financial sector, international trade connections, and creative urban planning.
Following up is Shenzhen with 444 skyscrapers and New York third with 317. The tallest building in the world is the Buri Khalifa in Dubai reach 828 meters and has 163 floors for hotels, residence, offices, observation decks and communication systems.
The council adds that Skyscraper Day is the ideal time to examine which cities have the most skyscrapers and how they represent advancements in economy and design.
Also, the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat has weighed in noting that when it comes to soaring skylines and architectural marvels, no country has embraced the vertical revolution quite like China. Hong Kong, along with Shenzhen, and Guangzhou (5th position) are part of a burgeoning megacity known as the Greater Bay Area, which is home to over 1,500 skyscrapers. This is even more impressive when considering that Shenzhen, which now boasts a population of 17 million people, was just a small fishing village until the 1970s.
Looking at this data from another perspective, China actually has more skyscrapers than the rest of the world combined. China has 12 cities, 2777 skyscrapers and 72 supertalls (300-599 meters tall) in the top 20, compared to the rest of the world with 13 cities, 2350 skyscrapers and 67 supertalls.
China’s prominence in the world of skyscrapers—with three cities in the top five globally—is likely to remain unchallenged, especially with the expected dominance of high risers in Hong Kong’s Northern Metropolis development, slated for completion in 2036.
In Hong Kong, the tallest building is the 484-meter-tall International Commerce Center which has 108 floors for the Ritz Carlton hotel, offices and retail outlets. It is also the 14th tallest building in the world.
This is followed by Two International Finance Center reaching 415 meters and home to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority which is housed from the 77th to 88th floors of the building. And third on the list is Central Plaza in Wanchai which is 374 meters tall with 78 floors of office space. On the 75th floor is a church – iSEE Church, formerly known as the Sky City Church – which is the tallest church in the world.
But tall buildings bring their own problems, especially with urban planning. In this regard, Hong Kong has long addressed the problem of the "Wall Effect" high risers present and instead has transformed its vast skyline into a global leader in sustainable construction.
The Hong Kong Planning Department has introduced strict Urban Design Guidelines and Sustainable Building Standards to break up the long rows of uniform high-rises. Developers are required to leave wide gaps, known as "breezeways," between tall buildings so that these air corridors enable natural sea breezes to flow through, cooling the streets and dispersing vehicle exhaust.
Also, the collaborative effort between the government and the construction industry has established Hong Kong as an internationally recognized hub for green high-rises. New buildings, for example, are required to allocate between 20 and 30 per cent of their site to green spaces, leading to high-rise developments featuring lush sky gardens, green roofs, and vertical planting walls that help absorb heat.
A classic example of this is The Henderson in Hong Kong’s busy central business district, which ranks it among Asia’s greenest skyscrapers, having achieved a top-tier Platinum certification for its smart, zero-carbon cooling systems and resilient layouts.
The certification process was conferred by the LEED global rankings of sustainable and environmental friendly buildings which placed Hong Kong sixth worldwide (and fourth in Asia) for meeting its strict criteria.
The verticalization of Hong Kong is necessary because of severe shortage of land. About 43 per cent of the total land area falls within the protected areas such as country parks, marine parks, wetland, sites of special scientific interest, and water gathering grounds. These areas are either statutorily protected or highly restricted from development. Development can only go up. But this has also bought a premium on land supply and price.
All land in Hong Kong is owned by the government, except where St John’s Cathedral stands, which was granted a freehold in perpetuity to the Church of England in 1847. The government leases and grants land for ownership for long periods of time, generally about 50 years or more. Land is released for development in a timely manner depending on demand generally through auctions. So for the current quarter, only one piece of land for residential use will be offered for sale in Kowloon to provide for some 250 high-rise flats.
The measured land release comes as Hong Kong’s residential market shows signs of recovery after years of downturn and when the government has lowered its land premium revenue target for the 2026-27 financial year to about HK$18 billion (US$2.3 billion).
For the current quarter, supply would also include more than 3,000 units from the first Northern Metropolis large-scale land disposal project in Hung Shui Kiu. The government aims to award the tender during the next week or so.
The Hung Shui Kiu pilot site marked the first land sale under the government’s new large-scale land disposal model for the Northern Metropolis.
Again, all of the once fertile agricultural and fish pond land in the Northern Metropolis will be transformed into a sea of high rise futuristic buildings to keep Hong Kong at the top of the skyscraper ratings for many years to come.
