An Entrepreneurial City in Action: Hong Kong's Emerging Strategies in and for (Inter)Urban Competition

Abstract

The paper applies a Schumpeterian analysis of entrepreneurial cities to Hong Kong. It argues that the concept of entrepreneurship can be applied to cities as strategic actors, identifies various objects of urban entrepreneurship, and refers to the important role of entrepreneurial discourses, narratives and self-images. Despite its laissez-faire reputation, Hong Kong has a long history of urban entrepreneurship, but its strategies have been adapted to changing circumstances—most recently with its key role in an emerging cross-border region (Greater China) and its favourable insertion into the global economy. This has prompted a debate over the most appropriate strategies for Hong Kong, notably regarding the respective futures of manufacturing, services and the virtual economy. The concept of 'glurbanisation' as one form of the more general phenomenon of 'glocalisation' is introduced to illuminate these issues. The paper concludes by noting the increased importance of 'Siliconisation' as an accumulation strategy in east Asia.

'Best Places': Interurban Competition, Quality of Life and Popular Media Discourse

“…For him, a key characteristic of the urban entrepreneurialism is the "discursive construction [of the economy] as a distinc-tive object (of analysis, regulation, governance, conquest, and/or other practices)" (Jessop, 1997, p. 29). Once this economic space has been discursively defined in this way, it can become a key element in the development of what Cox and Mair (1988) referred to as a 'localist ideology' which undergirds feelings of commonality and positivity towards growth coalition agendas both within the locality itself and also among friendly agents and institutions working at other scales (Jessop and Sum, 2000).…”

“…Recently, Jessop (1997Jessop ( , 1998Jessop and Sum, 2000) has partially reformulated the entrepreneurial city thesis by replacing Harvey's emphasis on what institutions bear the risks associated with speculation, with a definition of entrepreneurialism in terms of innovation (Jessop, 1998, footnote 9).…”

“…The link between the rankings and what these actors do to increase their city's competitiveness has at least two concrete elements. First, their unequivocal nature and the constant circulation and repetition of their measurement criteria and results by national and local media outlets and, crucially, by the private consultants frequently hired by cities to envision strategies for their future (Jessop and Sum, 2000;Olds, 1997), provide cities with clear choices regarding policies they might enact, the goals they set themselves, the cities they choose to emulate and compete with, and so on. In the more extreme cases, the rankings come to be regarded as 'off the shelf' solutions to complex economic development problems.…”

“…The second concern in the contemporary literature is with the use of 'extra-economic' factors-i.e. the social, cultural and political elements of urban life-in the construction and legitimation of interurban economic competition (Jessop, 1997(Jessop, , 1998Jessop and Sum, 2000). In his recent engagement with the entrepreneurial city thesis, Jessop (1997, p. 31) places "the entrepreneurial concern to create 'new combinations' of economic and/or extra-economic factors which will further urban and regional competitiveness" at the heart of his discussion.…”

La economía política de la escala y la construcción de las regiones transfronterizas

“…Esto puede ser visto como un caso especial de transrregionalización, en la medida que las ciudades globales tengan regiones extensas y porque la jerarquía de ciudades globales tiene niveles menores y nichos especializados, que también forman víncu-los transnacionales. Cuando la promoción de tales vínculos resultan en una extraversión de las estrategias de desarrollo urbano que intentan promover la competitividad de una ciudad en la economía global, podemos referirnos a la "glurbanización" (ver Jessop & Sum, 2000).…”