Explainer with Stakeholders: HK's Five-Year Plan -- how is it different from Policy Address?

Hong Kong is drawing up its first Five-Year Plan -- a blueprint expected to shape the city's future for years to come.

As the government sets to launch a public consultation this month, a scholar and lawmakers say the planning should be focused and strategic -- rather than overly detailed.

Chief Executive John Lee said in February Hong Kong will formulate a five-year development blueprint.

While the 'Five-Year Plan' is a new concept for Hong Kong, the mainland has been using the approach for more than seven decades. The plans have long been a key tool of national governance with priorities evolving to meet the needs of different eras.

Since 2006, instead of just 'plan,' the blueprint has officially been called 'development plan,' underscoring the government's greater emphasis on market forces.

Officials say Hong Kong's version will cover a wide range of policy areas with innovation and technology, financial development and the Northern Metropolis expected to feature prominently.

So how will the city's first five-year plan differ from the annual Policy Address?

Advisor of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies Lau Siu-kai says the Policy Address contains too many day-to-day policy matters while the five-year plan will focus more on long-term development or integration with national strategies.

In January, lawmaker Johnny Ng proposed in the Legislative Council the need to implement a 'Hong Kong-style Five-Year Plan'.

Ng says after the 1997 handover, the government strongly supported innovation and technology with a 5 billion-dollar fund for the sector.

But for some time, 'innovation and technology' was absent in policy discussions.

Ng says with long-term planning, such things will likely happen less.

All 15 policy bureaux have formed dedicated working groups to prepare the document.

For the first time, the government and the Legislative Council have set up a 'coordination mechanism,' with all legislators assisting in collecting public opinion.

Stanley Ng, Chief Coordinator of LegCo's Subcommittee on Hong Kong's Work to Actively Dovetail with the National 15th Five-Year Plan, says people may think labour and business representatives would naturally disagree but when everyone is focused on expanding Hong Kong's overall economic pie, differences become much smaller.

Unlike the mainland, where state-owned enterprises often play a major role in implementing the five-year plans, Hong Kong's version will rely heavily on market participation.

The Hong Kong Retail Management Association calls on the government to tap more business opinions when formulating the plan.

Its chairwoman Annie Yau Tse says macro directions are definitely necessary but more engagements with the business community from the start will allow better alignment with market needs.

She says it is also an opportunity to explore ways to help Hong Kong enterprises enter the mainland market and improve the overall business environment.