A high-level government-business dialogue on development, co-hosted by the United Nation's Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and International Trade Center (ITC), was kicked off in Macao on Tuesday.

Over 100 representatives from some 30 countries and regions, most of which from the Asia-Pacific, attended the conference, two months ahead of the sixth ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO), scheduled for December in Hong Kong.

Kim Hak-Su, executive secretary of the UNESCAP, told the opening ceremony that the Macao conference is hopefully to do a preparation job for the forthcoming WTO ministerial meeting.

Kim said the participants including government officials, business leaders, researchers, and trade policy analysts are to gain a greater common understanding on the key regional issues covering agriculture and textile.

Kim, also the UN under-secretary general, said the Macao conference is hopefully to aid reinforce the interplay between regionalism and multilateralism.

The three-day meeting will conclude on Thursday.

(Xinhua News Agency October 4, 2005)