China is taking steps to speed up opening municipal service sector to domestic and overseas investors, said officials of the Ministry of Construction Wednesday.

The Chinese Government plans to seek diversified resources for the country's projects of public services, according to the ministry.

This would be another break-up of monopolies, involving water supply, gas supply, heating, sewage treatment, waste treatment, public transit, environmental protection, and environmental sanitation.

Besides encouraging more overseas and domestic private investors to invest individually or in cooperation with local authorities or enterprises in the construction and operation of the municipal works, the ministry will also establish and improve franchising management regulations.

The ministry will hold a series of activities, such as seminars, exhibitions and investment fairs, to promote the reform.

The first move will take place from Sept. 24 to 26, when the first national investment fair for promoting marketization of municipal works will be held in Beijing and is expected to be attended by government official, scholars and experts, managers of municipal projects, international and domestic investment organizations and agents.

The ministry has also set up an infrastructure projects information database and a website for municipal projects investment.

Statistics from the information database show that nearly one hundred billion yuan will be needed for the already registered infrastructure projects in China.

(Xinhua News Agency August 7, 2003)