TASMANIA will host two high-level Chinese delegations and a major business forum next month, opening up lucrative development opportunities for the state.
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The state will feature prominently during Australia-China Week before Premier Will Hodgman leads a trade mission to four Chinese cities.
The Examiner understands that Co-ordinator-General John Perry will host a delegation of 18 government and business leaders from Fujian province in the week beginning March 23.
The envoy will include representatives of the shipping and logistics, real estate development, agrifood and retail industries and will include site visits across the state.
A separate delegation from the China Development Bank will also visit the state next month, to move closer to the establishment of a China-Tasmania development planning committee, which was agreed to in a memorandum of understanding between the state and the bank last year.
The committee will identify major projects on behalf of Chinese investors and financiers.
Hobart will then host an Australia-China Business Forum, which is expected to include around 300 Tasmanian, interstate and Chinese participants.
Mr Hodgman said the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping and last year’s TasInvest forum were already paying dividends for the state.
‘‘There are at least seven projects where Tasmanian proponents are in active discussions with Chinese investors,’’ he said.
‘‘Hopefully it won’t be too long before a number of Tasmanian projects pitched at TasInvest become a reality, creating Tasmanian jobs and growing Tasmania’s economy.’’
He said the state government had committed $16 million for tourism marketing on the back of Mr Xi’s visit.
At the end of March, Mr Hodgman will lead his own week-long trade mission, which is understood to include visits to Shanghai, Beijing, Fuzhou and Xi’an.
‘‘The Chinese President’s visit and TasInvest opened up so many doors for Tasmania and created so many opportunities and it is vital that we capitalise on them, which is what this government is doing,’’ Mr Hodgman said.