The Ninth Pan-Pearl River Delta Regional Cooperation and Development Forum and Economic and Trade Fair, which will open in Guiyang on Monday, is expected to play an increasingly important role in boosting regional economic cooperation and development.

The bloc, dubbed 9+2, encompasses Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan, Guangdong, Hainan, Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan provinces, the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, and the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions.

It covers one-fifth of China's territory and one-third of the population.