Zhanjiang of Guangdong province, an important city along the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road, showed confidence in hosting the 2016 China Marine Economy Expo (CMEE), according to Zhao Zhihui, member of the municipal standing committee and executive vice mayor of Zhanjiang.

United efforts will be made to strengthen communications with the sponsors and the organizers as well as enhance publicity, Zhao added, at a working meeting for the event arrangements held on Sept 26 and 27.

Zhu Dezhou, deputy director of Publicity and Education Center of the State Oceanic Administration, said that they would strongly support the event by calling for more participants from coastal provinces and cities.

The expo will be staged at the Zhanjiang Olympic Sports Center from Nov 24 to 27, with a total floor area of 200,000 square meters. It will be divided into the National Pavilion, the International Pavilion, and the Industry Pavilion. Three areas on start-ups, tourism and culture as well as sales exhibition will offer other various displays.

The National Pavilion, compared with last year's, will make a breakthrough by showcasing cutting-edge technological achievements such as a Kamov Ka-32 helicopter used for Antarctic exploration, according to Zhu.

The domestically developed "Qianlong 2", the country's first Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) able to dive to 4,500 meters, used to explore polymetallic sulfide deposits in the deep ocean, will also be on display.

The CMEE, the only national-level marine economic and trade exhibition activity will demonstrate the latest oceanic developments including protection, biomedicine, desalination, and economic applications this year.

The 2015 China Marine Economy Expo held in Zhanjiang attracts flocks of visitors. [Photo/gdzjdaily.com.cn]