Officials in Anhui province said on Friday that the amount of its overseas investment grew nearly threefold by the end of June, to $610 million.

According to figures from the Anhui Provincial Bureau of Commerce, its investment in six countries along the Belt and Road trade routes alone reached $280 million.

Zhan Xialai, the province's executive vice-governor, said it will continue to encourage its own State-owned enterprises to invest in countries along the Belt and Road, and is also aiming to help 1,000 non-State companies "go global" in future.

Anhui's Governor Li Jinbin said the province is also working flat out at attracting some 100 overseas firms to invest there next year, and various negotiations are ongoing on cooperation deals with SOEs and private firms.

The Belt and Road Initiative, proposed by China in 2013, is a trade and infrastructure network that includes the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. The network connects Asia, Europe and Africa and passes through more than 60 countries and regions with a population of about 4.4 billion.

Li said Anhui currently has 88 listed companies, ranking it ninth in number in the country and first in China's central region. One of those is Anhui Conch Cement Company Ltd.