The conference has proved successful and a good start to the annual series of meetings, former Philippine President Fidel Ramos, chairman of the BFA Board of Directors, told a press conference there. The BFA will be an important supplement to the Asian cooperation mechanism, he added.

Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji made the opening remarks and gave a keynote speech at the opening of the meeting.

In his remarks, Zhu said that, with the theme of "New Century, New Challenge, A New Asia", the gathering gave explicit expression to the objectives of the forum: to be an Asia-based, globally-focused venue for discussions on development, and to fully reflect the common aspiration of the Asian countries to strengthen dialogue, enhance mutually beneficial cooperation and promote prosperity.

During the conference, Zhu met with Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea Lee Han-dong, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Manh Cam. They exchanged views on how to improve regional economic cooperation and bilateral ties.

Heads of state and government attending the meeting noted in their speeches that Asian countries should improve regional cooperation and exchanges, and open wider to the outside world in a bid to sharpen their competitiveness and make Asia an economic enter of the world in the new century.

About 2,000 senior government officials, experts and businessmen from 48 countries and regions attended the meeting, three times more than last year.

During the conference, the 11-member Board of Directors and its chairman and secretary-general were elected.

According to Ramos, the Board of Directors will hold quarterly meetings, and the first meeting will be held here three months hence, while Tokyo and Seoul are to host the second and third meetings, respectively.

(Xinhua News Agency April 13, 2002)