The 7th Asia Arts Festival is expected to open in Foshan, in south China's Guangdong Province, simultaneously with the Cultural Asia Ministerial Forum this November, the first ministerial-level meeting in the cultural field ever hosted in China.

The festival, to kick off on November 11, is in preparation, said Meng Xiaosi, vice minister of culture, in Beijing Monday at a press conference. So far, the cultural ministers of 20 Asian countries have applied to attend the forum. Twenty-one countries, including China, will dispatch first-class artistic troupes to the festival.

During the forum, cultural ministers and officials will discuss maintaining and developing Asian art and cultural traditions against economic globalization, Meng said, adding that a "Foshan Declaration" will be issued to call for joint efforts for arts development by all Asian countries.

In the meantime, artistic performances and exhibitions will show the diversified culture of respective Asian countries, among which 23 performances by 11 Chinese troupes will cover a wide-range of subjects, including ballet, local operas and children's plays.

Lei Yulan, vice governor of Guangdong Province, said that cultural sophistication is integral to sustainable development. Foshan, the 11th top Chinese city in terms of competitive capacity, has taken the Arts Festival as an opportunity to boost its local cultural industry.

This year's festival is the first regional arts gala held by the Chinese government. Ninety-seven artistic troupes from 22 Asian countries have so far attended the previous festivals.

The Asia Arts Festival was founded in 1998.

(Xinhua News Agency October 18, 2005)