This year's Boao Forum for Asia (BFA), one of Asia's biggest annual economic meetings, will focus on seeking development, BFA Secretary General Zhou Wenzhong said on Wednesday.

The global economic outlook remains grim for 2013, as leading economies still face a bumpy road of transformation and a call for cooperation issued during the 2008 economic crisis has been weaken by protectionism and other discordance, the secretary general said at a press conference.

"It's important for Asian countries to achieve a higher level of economic integration, as this will help promote regional economic development," Zhou said.

This year's forum is intended to promote the Asian tradition of seeking win-win results, as well as to help regional economies look for common ground, transcend differences and pursue common development, he said.

More than 10 state and government leaders from Asia and other regions will be invited to the three-day forum, which will begin on April 6 in Boao, a coastal town in south China's Hainan province, Zhou said.

The forum is expected to attract more than 2,000 journalists and leaders from government, business and academic circles, he said.

Under the theme of "Asia Seeking Development for All: Restructuring, Responsibility & Cooperation," the forum will consist of 51 sessions in which participants will discuss reform, transformation and innovation, as well as reflect on development paths for different regions and industries, Zhou said.

A non-governmental and non-profit international organization founded in 2001, the BFA works to promote regional economic integration and bring Asian countries closer to their development goals

(Xinhua News Agency January 23, 2013)