香港に隣接する中国広東省の深圳（シンセン）は、経済特区として中国の中でもっとも経済発展している都市のひとつです。香港と隣接していることもあり、将来2020年に香港と深圳が合併して1つの巨大都市を作る計画が現在あるそうです。もし1つになれば、GDPで世界でもニューヨーク、東京に次ぐ第3位のメガシティになるとのこと。なんというかスケールのでかい話です。
以下はその記事です。
この合併構想については、以前に香港のシンクタンク「智経研究中心（Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre）」 が同様の構想についての研究レポート"Building a Hong Kong-Shenzhen Metropolis"を香港政府に対して出しており、また記事にもあるように今年の香港政府行政長官の施政報告の中にもあったようです。
香港－深セン統合都市の構想
合併について、この記事にもあるように経済的なメリットはものすごくあると思います。そして、一方で一国二制度の消滅、香港の民主の危機というのも非常に危惧される部分です。
もう1つ忘れてはならないのは環境問題でしょう。以前も紹介したとおり、広東省と香港は共同で大気観測システムを構築し大気汚染に取り組んでおり、その点では問題ないと思いますが、実際、深センと香港では生活環境の質に大きな差があるといえます。香港のスタンダード（それ自体も高いとは言えないですが）に深センが合わせるのであればいいですが、逆だと大変なことになると思います。
人々の意識の上でも大きな差があります。現在でも多くの中国人が香港に移住していますが、1つの都市になるともっと多くなると予想されます。ある種まったく違う国だった人々が急に1つになるわけですから、ドイツの統一と同じようなことになるような印象があります。
ただ実際はまだまだ時間はありますし、メリットも多いですから、本当に実現するような感じがします。香港、深センとも変化のスピードがすごく早い、10年もしたら今とまったく違う世界になっている感じ。環境、持続可能性の点でも世界でトップのメガシティができるといいなと思いました。
以下はその記事です。
International Mega-City of Hong Kong+Shenzhen
By 2020, Shenzhen, a southern Chinese city, and Hong Kong will be integrated into one mega-city. When Shenzhen and Hong Kong are merged, it is likely that the world’s third largest city will be created, following New York and Tokyo, in terms of the gross product. On November 22, the Chinese media reported that the "Comprehensive Plan for Shenzhen (2007-2020)," elaborating on the integration of Shenzhen and Hong Kong, had been disclosed for the first time on the previous day.
The Plan was endorsed by the Ministry of Construction on October 16, 2007 and is awaiting the formal permission of State Council Members, which will soon follow. According to the Plan, Shenzhen and Hong Kong will commence their merging process in six aspects over the next 13 years – transportation, customs, ecology, construction, finance, and information technology (IT) industry.
To serve this objective, an express train route will be built by 2020, directly linking Hong Kong International Airport and Shenzhen Bao`an International Airport, as the first step of the process. The express train linking the two cities, which are 40km apart, will allow the two airports to function as one, in actuality, by shortening the transfer time between the two to 17 minutes.
In the boundary zones of the two cities, a high-technology valley will be created to jointly attract foreign investment. They will also promote plans to allow the residents to move between the two cities without restriction.
In addition, policies will be promoted that will allow students of Shenzhen and Hong Kong to freely enter universities in their counterpart cities and also establish a joint government building.
Shenzhen and Hong Kong will create a bureau for joint development in order to integrate their administrations and share policies for financial integration.
The Chinese government expects that the gross production of the mega-city will amount to 1.1 trillion dollars by 2020, when the two cities are merged, ranking it third, status following the 1.78 trillion dollars of New York and 1.43 trillion dollars of Tokyo.
It also anticipates that the merger of Hong Kong and Shenzhen will naturally help to accomplish the absorption of Hong Kong into the mainland, overcoming the current "One Country, Two Systems" situation. It aims to kill two birds with a stone, expecting that the integration in economy, administration and life circles of residents will naturally eliminate the political friction, including the democratization of Hong Kong.
The Chinese government believes that Shenzhen will have no serious difficulty integrating with Hong Kong economically by 2020, as it is showing a GDP growth rate of 15% per year, though its current GDP per capita is 8,800 dollars, one third of that of Hong Kong.
The director of the Shenzhen Urban Planning Bureau, Wang Feng, who drafted the Shenzhen-Hong Kong integration plan, said, “I held discussions with numerous parties in Hong Kong, including the Council for Sustainable Development, Urban Planning Bureau, Real Estate Bureau, Environmental Protection Bureau, Agriculture and Fishery Bureau, and Hong Kong Institute of Planners, to draft this plan.”
The Chinese media said that Shenzhen’s plan resembles the “Plan to Establish an Integrated Hong Kong and Shenzhen” announced by Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen on October 10, 2007.
http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?bicode=060000&biid=2007112329238
By 2020, Shenzhen, a southern Chinese city, and Hong Kong will be integrated into one mega-city. When Shenzhen and Hong Kong are merged, it is likely that the world’s third largest city will be created, following New York and Tokyo, in terms of the gross product. On November 22, the Chinese media reported that the "Comprehensive Plan for Shenzhen (2007-2020)," elaborating on the integration of Shenzhen and Hong Kong, had been disclosed for the first time on the previous day.
The Plan was endorsed by the Ministry of Construction on October 16, 2007 and is awaiting the formal permission of State Council Members, which will soon follow. According to the Plan, Shenzhen and Hong Kong will commence their merging process in six aspects over the next 13 years – transportation, customs, ecology, construction, finance, and information technology (IT) industry.
To serve this objective, an express train route will be built by 2020, directly linking Hong Kong International Airport and Shenzhen Bao`an International Airport, as the first step of the process. The express train linking the two cities, which are 40km apart, will allow the two airports to function as one, in actuality, by shortening the transfer time between the two to 17 minutes.
In the boundary zones of the two cities, a high-technology valley will be created to jointly attract foreign investment. They will also promote plans to allow the residents to move between the two cities without restriction.
In addition, policies will be promoted that will allow students of Shenzhen and Hong Kong to freely enter universities in their counterpart cities and also establish a joint government building.
Shenzhen and Hong Kong will create a bureau for joint development in order to integrate their administrations and share policies for financial integration.
The Chinese government expects that the gross production of the mega-city will amount to 1.1 trillion dollars by 2020, when the two cities are merged, ranking it third, status following the 1.78 trillion dollars of New York and 1.43 trillion dollars of Tokyo.
It also anticipates that the merger of Hong Kong and Shenzhen will naturally help to accomplish the absorption of Hong Kong into the mainland, overcoming the current "One Country, Two Systems" situation. It aims to kill two birds with a stone, expecting that the integration in economy, administration and life circles of residents will naturally eliminate the political friction, including the democratization of Hong Kong.
The Chinese government believes that Shenzhen will have no serious difficulty integrating with Hong Kong economically by 2020, as it is showing a GDP growth rate of 15% per year, though its current GDP per capita is 8,800 dollars, one third of that of Hong Kong.
The director of the Shenzhen Urban Planning Bureau, Wang Feng, who drafted the Shenzhen-Hong Kong integration plan, said, “I held discussions with numerous parties in Hong Kong, including the Council for Sustainable Development, Urban Planning Bureau, Real Estate Bureau, Environmental Protection Bureau, Agriculture and Fishery Bureau, and Hong Kong Institute of Planners, to draft this plan.”
The Chinese media said that Shenzhen’s plan resembles the “Plan to Establish an Integrated Hong Kong and Shenzhen” announced by Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen on October 10, 2007.
http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?bicode=060000&biid=2007112329238
この合併構想については、以前に香港のシンクタンク「智経研究中心（Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre）」 が同様の構想についての研究レポート"Building a Hong Kong-Shenzhen Metropolis"を香港政府に対して出しており、また記事にもあるように今年の香港政府行政長官の施政報告の中にもあったようです。
香港－深セン統合都市の構想
合併について、この記事にもあるように経済的なメリットはものすごくあると思います。そして、一方で一国二制度の消滅、香港の民主の危機というのも非常に危惧される部分です。
もう1つ忘れてはならないのは環境問題でしょう。以前も紹介したとおり、広東省と香港は共同で大気観測システムを構築し大気汚染に取り組んでおり、その点では問題ないと思いますが、実際、深センと香港では生活環境の質に大きな差があるといえます。香港のスタンダード（それ自体も高いとは言えないですが）に深センが合わせるのであればいいですが、逆だと大変なことになると思います。
人々の意識の上でも大きな差があります。現在でも多くの中国人が香港に移住していますが、1つの都市になるともっと多くなると予想されます。ある種まったく違う国だった人々が急に1つになるわけですから、ドイツの統一と同じようなことになるような印象があります。
ただ実際はまだまだ時間はありますし、メリットも多いですから、本当に実現するような感じがします。香港、深センとも変化のスピードがすごく早い、10年もしたら今とまったく違う世界になっている感じ。環境、持続可能性の点でも世界でトップのメガシティができるといいなと思いました。
