The 14th Straits Forum opens in the coastal city of Xiamen in Fujian province on July 12. [Photo/taiwan.cn]

The 14th Straits Forum kicked off in the coastal city of Xiamen in Fujian province on July 12. This year's forum will carry on the theme of promoting people-to-people exchanges and deepening integrated development across the Taiwan Straits.

The main conference of the forum is scheduled to take place at online and offline venues on July 13. 

In addition, 43 activities in four categories consisting of youth, grass roots, cultural, and economic exchanges will be held, including the Straits Youth Forum, which is an educational camp for children, a community service seminar, a film and television event, and a rural integrated development forum.

About 2,000 people from different walks of life in Taiwan, including representatives of political parties, co-sponsors of the forum, various social organizations, and agricultural sectors, as well as industry elites and rural officials have been invited to attend the offline activities.

The organizers said that this year's forum aims to deepen Taiwan residents' understanding of the fact that Fujian and Taiwan cultures share the same roots and the event will serve as a platform to encourage more people across the Taiwan Straits to safeguard Chinese culture.

The forum will also encourage people from Taiwan to actively participate in the implementation of the country's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), the new development pattern, high-quality growth, and the construction of the Belt and Road.

As the host city of the forum, Xiamen will also organize celebratory activities in October and November to mark the 35th anniversary of cross-Straits exchanges.

The activities will mainly revolve around agricultural produce promotion, rural vitalization, medical services and cutting carbon emissions.