Chinese city of Guangzhou was honored on Wednesday the first-class Mexico Water Prize at the 5th World Water Forum being held in Turkey, for the municipal government's excellent management of water resources.

Su Zequn, vice mayor of Guangzhou, received the prize on behalf of the city on the third day of the forum, the largest water-related event in the world, which aims to promote ideas about conserving, managing and supplying water.

Guangzhou, capital of southern China's Guangdong Province, with 10 million of population, is the third largest city in China after Beijing and Shanghai. The city has suffered water pressure and water pollution as the economy is booming during the past three decades.

Since 1997, the government launched a number of water initiatives, which greatly improved the once heavily polluted inlets of the city's Pearl River.

The government is expected to allocate 48.6 billion yuan (some US$7.11 billion) for water management in 2009 and 2010, which accounts for one third of its financial budget.

The Mexico Water Prize was established in 2006 during the 4th World Water Forum held in the Mexico City to honor achievements of water management.

Besides Guangzhou, the Mexican city of Leon was awarded the second-class prize and Peruvian city of Lima won the third-class prize.

Some 28,000 participants from all over the world, including governments, nonprofit groups, institutions and individuals are gathering in the 5th World Water Forum, scheduled for March 16 to 22 in the largest Turkish city of Istanbul.

The forum is organized every three years by the World Water Council together with the host country.

(Xinhua News Agency March 18, 2009)