The Shenzhen Virtual University Park in China is a win-win situation for the city of Shenzhen and the Hong Kong universities setting up research facilities there. Prior to the park’s opening, there were only two colleges in Shenzhen. More were required to train enough workers for the burgeoning manufacturing hub. So Shenzhen built the park in 1999 and universities came.
The universities, in turn, receive several benefits. For example, they are afforded the opportunity to become leading universities on the mainland instead of just in Hong Kong, are eligible for mainland research funding, and can expand their space for teaching and research to meet rising demand.