Leung Chun-ying, vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), attended a meeting to promote the coordinated development of the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) industry between the provinces of Hunan, Jiangxi and Guangdong and the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, on Sept 27, via video link.

Leung called for stronger efforts to improve the framework for collaborative development across the entire TCM industry chain, give full play to the advantages of each of the five regions, and ensure the smooth operation of the supply chain and progress in moving up the value chain.

He also noted that Hong Kong can play a role as a "super contact" for TCM to go global as the region has a long TCM tradition, many businesses engaged in the manufacturing, processing and trade of TCM, and a robust regulation system.

At the meeting, officials from Hunan, Jiangxi, Guangdong and Hong Kong introduced the development of the TCM industry in their regions. Liu Liang, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering in Macao, shared his idea to build an alliance for the collaborative development of the TCM industry in the five regions.