The port city of Zhanjiang is gearing up for a farm produce trade fair oriented with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) market this June.

The 2016 Zhanjiang-ASEAN Agricultural Products Trade Fair is scheduled to open at the Zhanjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center on June 2 to 5, said local officials. So far more than 220 ASEAN enterprises are confirmed to attend the fair and the total number of exhibitors is expected to hit 800, including the country's leading enterprises and research institutions in the agriculture sector.

The southernmost city in Guangdong province, one of the pivot cities of China's Belt and Road Initiative, has been intensifying its opening-up by enhancing cooperation with ASEAN.

By last year, Zhanjiang had invested 4.1 billion yuan ($634 million) to set up 11 enterprises in ASEAN countries, with the outlay accounting for 91 percent of the city's total foreign investment. Bilateral trade has almost doubled over the past five years to nearly 5.19 billion yuan in 2015 at an average annual increase of 18.6 percent, the city's customs statistics showed.

The farm produce trade fair is part of the city's move to expand its partnership with the 10-member bloc in the realm of modern agriculture, besides other cooperation fields such as port logistics, aquaculture and tourism.

During a preparatory meeting held on April 26, Mayor Wang Zhongbing said that the fair will be the beginning of a new phase of opening-up and mutually beneficial cooperation with ASEAN.

"It will be more than a simple farm produce show. We will take the chance to build a platform for more international cooperation in the sector," said the mayor. He added that the city will mobilize societal forces for the organizing of the fair, to achieve de-administration and market operation.

The Belt and Road Initiative proposed by China refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt that links China with Europe through central and western Asia, and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road that connects China with Southeast Asia, Africa and Europe. China sees the ASEAN bloc as a preferred partner of the "Belt and Road" cooperation, said Foreign Minister Wang Yi earlier in March.

Zhanjiang Mayor Wang Zhongbing hosts a preparatory meeting for the 2016 Zhanjiang-ASEAN Agricultural Products Trade Fair, April 26.

The Mayor speaks at the meeting.