Guizhou province in Southwest China is counting on the 2012 China (Guizhou) International Alcoholic Beverage Expo to introduce more foreign investment. The expectations come on the heels of last year's event, which garnered 49.74 billion yuan worth of investment contracts.

The province plans to present 926 projects, extending beyond the alcoholic sector, in hopes of raising 251 billion yuan. These projects include 125 ventures in primary industries, 495 in secondary industries and 306 in tertiary industries.

Meng Qiliang, vice-governor of the province, spelled out four preferential policies to help projects secure investment at the expo.

Firstly, the projects will be included in the provincial government's key inspection lists and will enjoy follow-up services from the government.

Secondly, they will be given priority in terms of resource allocation. This will allow simpler and more streamlined assessment, recording, and approval procedures.

Thirdly, each project will be designated a government official as its project consultant, who will provide high quality and efficient service.

Finally, once projects are completed, the provincial government will ask local governments to honor their promises in offering relevant preferential policies. The expo is part of Guizhou's attempt to open up to the outside world and attract more investment. Making flexible use of the nation's industrial policies, the relatively under-developed region is focusing on the readjustment of industrial structures, development of resource-intensive processing, and new- and hi-tech industrial projects.

A series of agreements are expected to be signed during this year's exhibition, including $430 million in import and export deals and 30 billion yuan in domestic trade.

During last year's event, Guizhou signed 1,867 contracts related to the alcoholic beverage industry, with a trade volume of 49.74 billion yuan and 1.5 billion yuan in imports and exports.

Edited by Michael Thai