Tourism sector in the suburbs set to benefit
"Our goal is to build our 'sturgeon world' into an ecological park that combines aquaculture with sightseeing and vocational tourism," Ma said. "But we need more investment, since our remote village cannot bear the large infrastructure costs alone."
Ma is confident such investment will be achieved as part of the impact of the APEC meeting.
"Huairou prides itself on its industry and it is trying to build tourism products and services based on those strengths," he said.
Zhou Zhengyu, the head of Beijing's tourism commission, said the tourism sector in the suburbs of the city offers great potential.
"The income from suburban tourism accounts for only 1 or 2 percent of the total tourism income of Beijing," Zhou said.
"But in the future, Beijing will try to develop its suburban tourism by highlighting different districts' strengths and attracting large companies and investment to these areas," he added.
Li Mingde, deputy director of the tourism research center at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said APEC brings opportunities for the tourism industry in Huairou and other suburbs of Beijing.
