BOAO, Hainan, March 28 -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday proposed a conference of dialogue among Asian civilizations to be held with an aim to boost regional cooperation and development.

The president made the proposal when addressing the opening ceremony of the 2015 annual conference of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) in the coastal town of China's southernmost island province of Hainan.

The president said that the conference will provide a platform to enhance interactions among the youth, people's groups, local communities and the media and to form a network of think-tank cooperation, so as to add to Asian people's rich cultural life and contribute to more vibrant regional cooperation and development