North part of Qianhai E-hub put into use

The north part of Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Youth Innovation and Entrepreneur Hub (E-hub) is put into use. File photo

The north part of Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Youth Innovation and Entrepreneur Hub (E-hub) was put into use last Thursday, which will provide another 92,000 square meters of space for young entrepreneurs, especially those from Hong Kong and Macao.

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee delivered a video speech at the ceremony. He said Qianhai is an important platform for the cooperation between Shenzhen and Hong Kong. The implementation for the Qianhai Plan will create more opportunities for Hong Kong to integrate into the country’s overall development and he encouraged more young Hong Kong people to seize the opportunity to realize a wonderful life.

Shenzhen Party chief Meng Fanli and Mayor Qin Weizhong attended the opening ceremony. Qin said Shenzhen will continue to support the E-hub’s improvement to provide best environment and strongest support for young Hong Kong people’s innovation and entrepreneurship in Shenzhen. He expected more Hong Kong people to chase their dreams in Qianhai while contributing to deeper cooperation between the two places.

The north part of the E-hub will have four centers and one neighborhood: the industrial agglomeration center will be home to quality enterprises in the fields of financial technology, e-commerce, information technology and professional services, etc.; the entrepreneurship acceleration center will introduce accelerators with the strong ability to integrate innovation and entrepreneurship resources and to introduce Hong Kong-funded projects; the achievement transformation center will house research platforms such as universities’ laboratories, engineering centers and entrepreneurial platforms; the cultural experience center will absorb international and creative contents to create a new landmark in Qianhai; and the Hong Kong-style vibrant neighborhood will build a trendy food city and a creative youth residential community.

The E-hub was put into use in 2014, originally having 47,000 square meters of space. In 2019, it was recognized by the Guangdong Provincial Government and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government as one of the innovation and entrepreneurship bases for young people from Guangdong and Hong Kong. So far, a total of 601 startups, including 331 from Hong Kong, have been incubated in the E-hub.