Mount Wuyi, a World Heritage site in east China's Fujian Province, inaugurated a World Heritage Festival Thursday.

Present at the opening ceremony were over 1,200 people including UNESCO officials and representatives from 27 World Heritage sites in China.

The festival will include workshops on the protection and administration of world heritage sites and exhibitions on the scenic spots of China. A special fund for protecting world heritage sites will also be founded during the gala.

China, with 27 scenic spots on the list, has become one of the countries with the biggest number of world heritage sites.

In 1999, Mount Wuyi was included on the World Heritage List by UNESCO, to become the largest of China's World Heritage sites.

Covering a total area of 997.85 sq. km., Mount Wuyi is home to 3,728 varieties of plants and 5,110 kinds of animals, many of which are on the protection list, according to local experts.

Mount Wuyi is a key nature reserve for preserving biological diversity and it is considered one of the best preserved subtropical forests in the world.

(Xinhua 04/13/2001)