The Fifth Chongqing High-Tech Fair, which will be held in the southwestern municipality from November 15 to 19, will see a 100 per cent increase in foreign exhibitors compared with last year's event.

Mu Huaqing, vice-director of the Chongqing Science and Technology Commission, told a press conference in Beijing on Tuesday that the event will have a total of 1,200 stands, including 150 for foreign exhibitors.

The fair will particularly focus on the information technology sector and the civil application of military technology, Mu said.

There will be around 250 to 300 stands focusing on the civil application of military technology.

Russia will send a delegation on the civil application of military technology to the fair, with this becoming a major base for Sino-Russian bilateral co-operation, Mu said.

Mu said interactive summits will be held during the fair, which will discuss major topics including the Three Gorges Project and environmental protection, and the civil application of military technology.

The annual high-tech fair was launched in 1999 with an aim of turning Chongqing Municipality into one of western China's high-tech hubs and attracting more overseas investment to the region, improving the implementation of the country's western development strategy, Zhang Zhiqin, vice-director of International Co-operation Department of the Ministry of Science and Technology, told the press conference.

The fair also helps overseas enterprises explore the huge market in western China, Mu added.

The high-tech fair last year witnessed transactions totalling 12.5 billion yuan (US$1.5 billion) with 537 contracts being signed.

In addition, the Eighth Chongqing Investment and Trade Fair, which was scheduled to be held in the first half of the year but delayed due to the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) outbreak, will also be held from September 15-19, Mu revealed at the press conference.