Hong Kong released its first local medium-to-long-term development plan since the handover, alongside Chief Executive John Lee’s 2026 Policy Address. Covering 2026 to 2030, the blueprint places the 30,000-hectare Northern Metropolis at the center of efforts to expand housing, employment and economic capacity, while reinforcing Hong Kong’s financial, maritime, trade, technology and offshore renminbi roles. The plan is the city’s first targeted five-year development program with binding and forward-looking goals, aligning its priorities more closely with mainland China’s 15th Five-Year Plan, which runs through 2030. Lee said the government would fully and faithfully implement One Country, Two Systems, maintain national-security safeguards and retain an executive-led governance model. The blueprint identifies artificial intelligence, robotics, microelectronics, new energy, advanced manufacturing, new materials, healthcare and lifestyle applications as technology priorities, while targeting an increase in gross domestic R&D spending from 1.13% to 2.7% of GDP within five years. It also sets out plans for an international gold trading center, including gold-market links with Shanghai and exploration of a renminbi-denominated gold and commodity market. The Northern Metropolis is intended to provide 500,000 residential units and 500,000 jobs. Lee said the five-year plan establishes the city’s long-term direction, while the annual Policy Address translates that blueprint into measures for the coming year.