2026-08-07
HKGBC's Submission of Views for the 2026 Policy Address Public Consultation and the Public Consultation on Hong Kong’s First Five-Year Plan
In response to the captioned public consultation exercises, the Hong Kong Green Building Council (HKGBC) submitted the following suggestions to further promote green building development and support Hong Kong’s transition towards carbon neutrality, in alignment with the various parts of the First Five-Year Plan Consultation Document (the Document):
1. Develop the Northern Metropolis into an exemplar of green, healthy, carbon-neutral and sustainable community
To align with Part 1 of the Document on “Accelerate Northern Metropolis Development and Advance Spatial Planning in Other Areas”, it is important to introduce effective measures that will transform the Northern Metropolis and other New Development Areas into true exemplars of green, healthy, carbon-neutral and sustainable communities. As building-related activities account for over half of Hong Kong’s greenhouse gas emissions, green-certified buildings play a pivotal role in driving energy savings and addressing climate challenges. Leveraging Hong Kong's strengths in robust international systems, a unique legal framework, and a deep pool of professional talent, we recommend refining the green building policy by ensuring that all public and private buildings being planned, constructed, or refurbished in these areas adopt BEAM Plus, Zero-Carbon-Ready Building, and Net Zero Energy Building Certification Schemes. This will demonstrate Hong Kong’s commitment to green living and its carbon neutrality goal.
The Northern Metropolis, with its mix of new development areas, wetlands, and farmlands, is also an ideal opportunity to pilot nature‑based solutions such as sponge-city infrastructure, blue‑green corridors, and ecological networks. While the Greater Bay Area (GBA) possesses a strong manufacturing supply chain, it lacks internationally recognised validation platforms. Hong Kong, with its international standards and legal framework, is well placed to perform technology integration and testing. We propose establishing a "Green Technology Sandbox" within the Northern Metropolis, where Hong Kong and GBA enterprises can test and refine their components – modular vertical greening, smart flood barriers, renewable energy devices – in real‑world conditions. Upon successful validation, a joint promotion office with the GBA should be set up to market these "Hong Kong–GBA proven solutions" to Belt and Road countries, thereby transforming local infrastructure innovation into an export‑oriented industry and creating new economic opportunities.
2. Strengthen the synergy effect between green finance and green building technology developments
To connect Part 2, “Economy, Finance, and Trade”, with Part 3, “Innovation, Technology, and Industry Development”, of the Document, it is imperative to deepen the synergy between green finance and green building technology developments to accelerate the green and low-carbon transition of the built environment. We suggest aligning the “Hong Kong Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance” with the following areas:
1. Develop the Northern Metropolis into an exemplar of green, healthy, carbon-neutral and sustainable community
To align with Part 1 of the Document on “Accelerate Northern Metropolis Development and Advance Spatial Planning in Other Areas”, it is important to introduce effective measures that will transform the Northern Metropolis and other New Development Areas into true exemplars of green, healthy, carbon-neutral and sustainable communities. As building-related activities account for over half of Hong Kong’s greenhouse gas emissions, green-certified buildings play a pivotal role in driving energy savings and addressing climate challenges. Leveraging Hong Kong's strengths in robust international systems, a unique legal framework, and a deep pool of professional talent, we recommend refining the green building policy by ensuring that all public and private buildings being planned, constructed, or refurbished in these areas adopt BEAM Plus, Zero-Carbon-Ready Building, and Net Zero Energy Building Certification Schemes. This will demonstrate Hong Kong’s commitment to green living and its carbon neutrality goal.
The Northern Metropolis, with its mix of new development areas, wetlands, and farmlands, is also an ideal opportunity to pilot nature‑based solutions such as sponge-city infrastructure, blue‑green corridors, and ecological networks. While the Greater Bay Area (GBA) possesses a strong manufacturing supply chain, it lacks internationally recognised validation platforms. Hong Kong, with its international standards and legal framework, is well placed to perform technology integration and testing. We propose establishing a "Green Technology Sandbox" within the Northern Metropolis, where Hong Kong and GBA enterprises can test and refine their components – modular vertical greening, smart flood barriers, renewable energy devices – in real‑world conditions. Upon successful validation, a joint promotion office with the GBA should be set up to market these "Hong Kong–GBA proven solutions" to Belt and Road countries, thereby transforming local infrastructure innovation into an export‑oriented industry and creating new economic opportunities.
2. Strengthen the synergy effect between green finance and green building technology developments
To connect Part 2, “Economy, Finance, and Trade”, with Part 3, “Innovation, Technology, and Industry Development”, of the Document, it is imperative to deepen the synergy between green finance and green building technology developments to accelerate the green and low-carbon transition of the built environment. We suggest aligning the “Hong Kong Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance” with the following areas:
- Green building certification;
- Green building product and material certification;
- Existing building energy-saving retrofits;
- Climate adaptation and resilience investments; and
- Building carbon offset projects.
With over 40,000 private buildings aged 30 years or more in Hong Kong, many still view energy retrofitting as a cost burden. However, global investors and multinational corporations are increasingly factoring in the "brown discount" under climate disclosure frameworks – buildings that fail to decarbonise face downward pressure on market value, rental income, and financing costs, directly undermining our status as an international financial centre. Transition risk analysis to facilitate retrofit planning to prevent stranded assets has become a key investment consideration globally. We recommend mandating transition‑risk disclosure roadmaps for all major commercial buildings, linked to the “Hong Kong Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance”. Owners who commit to verified decarbonisation milestones should be offered transition‑linked loans with preferential interest rates, turning retrofitting from a compliance exercise into a value‑creation opportunity while protecting our city's long‑term asset values and global competitiveness.
In addition, a large-scale retrofit market cannot take shape without the Government helping to create the right conditions to crowd in private capital. The first Five-Year Plan provides a timely opportunity to organise the relevant policy tools, market capabilities and professional expertise into a coherent and forward-looking retrofit market strategy. The objective should be to identify the building types most suitable for early-stage retrofitting, analyse the specific barriers faced by different building categories, and develop practical, replicable models that can be scaled across the wider building stock.
3. Reinforce Hong Kong’s leading position in providing sustainable, green and liveable public housing
In line with Part 4, “People’s Livelihood and Social Development”, we recommend the following measures to reinforce Hong Kong’s leadership in delivering sustainable, green and liveable public housing:
- Establishing a “Green Living Assets” branding within asset management by delineating ancillary facilities — such as retail spaces, markets, and carparks — to showcase their role as community sustainability hubs and create distinct avenues for green finance intervention;
- Exploring the development of viable, flexible and tailored green labelling pathways, including the “Sustainable Property Management” theme certification under the BEAM Plus framework, to move towards modular or theme-based recognition that highlights localised operational achievements; and
- Examining and adopting holistic full life-cycle building management strategies, spanning new and existing buildings, to continuously enhance residents’ living standards and promote green living, while packaging Hong Kong’s high-density public housing expertise as an exportable model for regional and overseas markets.
4. Expand professional capacity building to facilitate regional green development co-operation
To support “Development of Regional Co-operation” under Part 5 of the Document, we recommend expanding professional training and capacity building through establishing a “Greater Bay Area (GBA) Green Building Collaboration Platform”. This will enhance cooperation with GBA partners and gradually extend to Belt and Road areas. Key initiatives may include:
- Promoting mutual recognition of professional qualifications and certifications;
- Establishing common GBA standards and guidelines; and
- Facilitating knowledge exchange and experience sharing.
Globally, competition for professionals in climate finance, carbon auditing, and nature‑based design is intensifying. As Hong Kong transitions to a green economy, skill upgrading across sectors is essential. Without clear career progression and upskilling pathways, Hong Kong risks losing its engineers, surveyors, property managers, and financial practitioners to cities such as Singapore and those in the Middle East. We urge the Government to launch a "Green Upskilling and Talent Retention 2030" initiative, which should:
- Update the Qualifications Framework to incorporate green competency modules;
- Expand the Continuing Education Fund to subsidise internationally recognised certifications (e.g., BEAM Pro, ESGCP, etc); and
- Collaborate with universities and professional bodies to establish clear green career ladders.
The goal is to train and retain 10,000 frontline practitioners by 2030, ensuring that our workforce sees a promising future in Hong Kong's green economy.
5. Promote reinforced building and infrastructure climate resiliency for green and low-carbon living
Under Part 6, “Integrated Development of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Green Living, and Other Areas”, we suggest strengthening climate-resilient and net-zero-aligned green building and infrastructure developments to promote energy-saving, carbon-reduction, green and low-carbon living. Related areas of work may include:
- Formulating and updating relevant certification schemes;
- Enhancing technical standards and industry guidelines; and
- Establishing data collection and sharing platforms.
Building a sustainable city is not merely an environmental responsibility – it is fundamental to expanding new markets, safeguarding competitiveness, and retaining our talent. We respectfully urge the Government to incorporate the above priorities into the 2026 Policy Address and the first Five-Year Plan.