A 3,000-member high-powered procurement mission from Jiangsu Province arrived in Taiwan Monday afternoon for a one-week stay, and is expected to place at least US$2 billion worth of orders with local suppliers, among the highest placed by similar missions from China ever.

The mission, the largest of its kind ever from China, was headed by Liang Baohua, secretary of the Chinese Communist Party in Jiangsu Province, the highest-ranking Chinese official to have visited the island so far.

The delegation, comprising executives from 61 companies, representatives from cultural, education and tourism sectors, is the most ambitious in a series of mainland purchasing missions to visit Taiwan, according to the island's ruling Kuomintang party, which invited Liang to visit Taiwan.

Upon arriving at the Taoyuan International Airport, Liang told reporters that he felt very happy to set foot on the “precious island.” “We're here to seek cooperation opportunities, enhance exchanges, and expand cooperation, so as to create a win-win status for both sides.”

Liang also noted that he will attend the opening ceremony for the Jiangsu Week in Taiwan Tuesday, when many agreements will be signed and procurement activities will be held.

At a dinner party hosted by the KMT's honourary chairman Wu Po-hsiung at the Grand Hotel in Taipei, Liang expressed his gratitude to the KMT for making him the first provincial secretary of the Chinese Communist Party to visit Taiwan.

Liang said his procurement mission will engage in large-scale exchanges with Taiwan in all fields. “As a province, we have the duty to contribute more to help realise the common vision of the peaceful development of cross-strait ties.”

He asked Wu to relay his sincere gratitude to KMT Chairman Ma Ying-jeou for the efforts in promoting cross-strait ties.

For his part, Wu said that people across the Taiwan Strait paid great attention to Liang's visit to Taiwan, because Liang is the highest-ranking Chinese official to visit the island, and the procurement mission is the largest in scale.

Participants in the dinner party included KMT lawmakers, party cadres, Chairman Tsai Yen-ming of the Want Want Group, Chairman Jeffrey L.S. Ku of the Chinatrust Group, Chairman Chen Wu-hsiung of the Chinese National Federation of Industries, Chairman Chang Ping-chao of the General Chamber of Commerce of the ROC, and Chairman C.K. Wang of the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA).

This afternoon, Liang will also visit AU Optronics in Central Taiwan Science Park and Chi Mei Electronics to invite them to join the Jiangsu provincial government's aggressive plan of developing TFT-LCD (thin-film-transistor, liquid crystal display) industry. The government there is offering a spate of incentives in terms of funds, land lot and tax.

The delegation will see local manufacturers in one-on-one meetings Tuesday, aiming to buy products ranging from food and chemicals to artificial fiber and flat panels.

According to TAITRA officials, more than 300 local suppliers have registered to attend the trade meetings, including those engaged in high-tech green energy, solar energy, and LED industries, as well as traditional industries such as machinery, petrochemicals, electronics, agriculture, and foodstuffs.

China Eastern Airline's Jiangsu branch operated several extra charter flights to transport homebound Taiwanese businessmen, Chinese media reports said.

Liang is accompanied by many senior provincial officials, business executives, cultural buffs and tour operators on his current visit, and the procurement mission is expected to have a total of 3,000 people after more groups from Jiangsu arrive in the coming days, said sources close to Taiwan's governing Kuomintang, which is hosting the visit.

As part of the Jiangsu Week activities, two Jiangsu-style operas will be presented in Taipei.

A 91-member Jiangsu troupe arrived in Taipei November 6 to prepare for the performances that will also include classic and modern forms of entertainment to signify the coastal Chinese province's fast development while preserving its traditional cultural heritage, according to Chiense media reports.