Officials unveil the Arxan UNESCO Global Geopark at a ceremony held in the city, on May 19. [Photo by Liu Xiuhong/China Daily]

The opening ceremony of the Arxan UNESCO Global Geopark was held in Arxan, Hinggan League, Inner Mongolia autonomous region on May 19.

The ceremony was attended by Zhen Futian, vice-chairman of the Inner Mongolia committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Sun Demin, counsel at the regional culture and tourism authority and other officials from the Hinggan League, representatives of global geoparks throughout the country.

Li He, major of Arxan, said at the opening ceremony that the unveiling of the Arxand UNESCO Global Geopark is another milestone in the city's tourism development, bringing great opportunities and challenges for the area not only in development of its tourism sector but also in protection of its geological resources.

He stressed that the local government will pay more attention to geological relics based on the global construction standard of geoparks and is committed to building the park into a new calling card of Inner Mongolia.

The 3,653 square kilometer Arxan UNESCO Global Geopark was approved by UNESCO on May 5, 2017.

The Arxan geopark is the region's third world-level geopark after Hexigten and Alxa.

Zhang Jianping (L), vice president of the UNESCO Global Geoparks Council, unveils the plaque for the Arxan UNESCO Global Geopark in Arxan, on May 19. [Photo by Qin Jirong/China Daily]