Private investors are being invited to help build 100 tourism projects with an estimated investment of about CNY25 billion in the Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region in the next five years. The China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) and Xinjiang tourism authorities have released a list of about 100 proposed tourism projects that private investors are being invited to fund, build and operate. The list includes the Silk Road tourism hub, cross-border tourism and a medical tourism service. Wu Wenxue, Deputy Director of CNTA, said the market, instead of the government, should be the driving force for the tourism industry in Xinjiang. “Now is a great time for the private sector to invest in Xinjiang,” Wu said. “Xinjiang has abundant tourism resources but an immature tourism industry. The region has great potential,” he added.