BEIJING, Feb. 11, (Xinhuanet) -- Shanghai will host more than 70 international conferences this year, city government spokeswoman Jiao Yang announced yesterday.

    The conventions, including a World Bank conference on alleviating poverty in May and a global convention of engineers in November, will prompt the local government to "expand accommodation at star-rated hotels and improve traffic," Jiao said.

    Jiao said the city government will take some measures, including enhancing traffic signs and adding 350 taxi flagging points, to improve the city's traffic situation. Meanwhile, she said 10,000 additional star-rated hotel rooms will open in the city by 2007.

    Shanghai currently hosts more than 60,000 rooms in 338 star-rated hotels. Many hotels, especially those of the five-star variety, said they are already fully booked for the next three months.

    About 100 new star-rated hotels are expected to open in the city by the end of next year, according to local tourism officials.

    Jiao didn't say how many will open in time for conferences this year.

    The world Bank and the central government will cosponsor the poverty conference at the Shanghai International Convention Center from May 25 to 27.

    "It will be the first time that an international financial organization has held a global conference on poverty alleviation," said Jiao, noting that the conference aims at advocating the experiences of some countries - particularly China - in reducing poverty.

    Some 1,000 people, including 400 from foreign countries, are expected to attend the meeting where the presidents of South Africa, Brazil and Tanzania will deliver keynote speeches, Jiao said.

    Other major international meetings include the 60th annual congress of the UN's Asia-Pacific Economic and Social Committee, which will run from April 20 to 28, the 55th congress of the World Health Organization's Western Pacific Region, which opens on September 13, and a Harvard Business School forum in June.

    "Many of these events will involve more than 3,000 participants," said Jiao. Enditem

(Shanghai Daily News)