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Tourism remains one of the world's most powerful economic engines generating jobs, driving investment and revitalizing communities. In China, domestic travel is proving to be a major force in economic development. In the first quarter of this year, Chinese residents made around 1.79 billion domestic trips, a year-on-year increase of 375 million.

But beyond national borders, China's tourism momentum is also opening new doors for international cooperation, including with Africa.

Zimbabwe's tourism prospects have been on the increase post-covid where the country has now surpassed its highest recorded figure of tourists from China of 30,000 arrivals set in 2009 and 2011. In 2024 Zimbabwe recorded slightly above 46,000 tourists from China becoming one of the favourite destinations for China in Africa. The country continues to take advantage of it's Tourist Offices in Beijing and Hong Kong to lure more tourists to the destination. Africa and Zimbabwe's destination awareness in China given the increase in business and investment opportunities for the Chinese, media coverage, power of word of mouth from friends and families of the sizeable Chinese population now resident in Zimbabwe and increase tourism promotion activities taking place in China in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Zhou Mi, Senior Research Fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, and Stanley Banda, Tourism Attaché for Zimbabwe in China and ASEAN, discussed with China Africa Talk how tourism is transforming both economies, and how stronger China-Africa collaboration could reshape global travel flows.

China Africa Talk: Could you tell us about Chinese domestic travel and with some examples and figures? How is it contributing to China's economic growth?

Zhou Mi: It is true that tourism is one of our advantages, as you know that China has a very large population, so people are able to travel, to go to other places, I think that's really a huge potential for the development.

Personally, I'm a tour guide, so I would say it's a great opportunity for us to go around in China and try to look at what is happening and try to experience some of the good foods, as you may know that China has a very huge demand on different kinds of tourism. The experiences are really diversified. You can enjoy not only the beautiful sceneries but also the cultural experiences and that is really helping people to have some relief after we have so much pressure every day.

China Africa Talk: When you travel domestically, have you heard any testimonies from guests whom you guided? Did they say anything about how their local areas are improving owing to such domestic travel?

Zhou Mi: It is true that people are trying to do different kinds of improvements. For example, people who are going to host the guests from other cities can put the information on online platforms like Ctrip, a travel booking platform. It is connected by e-commerce. During this year's May Day holiday, I went to a fishing village in Southern China and the family hotels required us to give them some good comments because they wanted to attract more people so that they can improve and increase their room capacities. It's very interesting because they are supporting their families based on this part-time job, as they are still depending on fishing.

China Africa Talk: Mr. Banda, you're here in Beijing representing the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority. What role does tourism play in Zimbabwe's economy? And do you think African countries are doing enough to exploit their tourism resources and strengthen their economies through local tourism?

Stanley Banda: As you might know, tourism is one of the key drivers of our national economy, and according to the tourism blueprint, the National Tourism Recovery and Growth Program (Strategy), tourism is meant to increase employment, foreign currency generation and poverty alleviation. And true to this aspiration, tourism in Zimbabwe continues to grow, outperforming key industries like mining and agriculture. We have seen in the past year that our tourism has contributed over 12% to GDP, and this is remarkable.

Maybe for now, let me just cherry pick some of the natural resources and the tourism resources that we have in Africa. When you talk of our pristine natural beauty and landscapes, it's equal to none. Our hospitality is unique. All this is inspired by our rich cultural heritage. And of course, the large tracts of freely roaming wildlife that continue to attract millions of visitors to the continent. 

Tourism is undoubtedly driving most African Country's economic growth, employment creation and sustainable development on the tourism front. Most countries are realizing increased foreign currency earnings through tourism, hence the zeal to continue attracting more tourists to their countries. Wildlife conservation efforts by various African countries is also on the rise. Inclusiveness is being championed across the continent by promoting community-based tourism and supporting marginalized communities. We have seen that some previously inaccessible communities have been developed through infrastructure development such as roads, schools, clinics and improved communication networks, thereby creating employment opportunities and income for these communities. The rise of eco-tourism in Africa reflects the positive outcome this phenomenon has on the continent towards responsible and environmentally conscious travel. However, more could be done by increasing empowerment programs for all in the tourism industry, the youth, women and physically challenged. The tourism product base needs to be widened to cater for more, at the same time reinforcing consumption of local products. But there is still that missing link in our tourism in Africa, which we need to learn from countries like China, how they are doing it. I'm sure once we get it right, our tourism will also produce more returns.

China Africa Talk: China celebrates its 15th annual China Tourism Day on May 19th. How influential is this event in promoting tourism in China?

Zhou Mi: Tourism is very diversified in China. Some places have their cultural advantages and others have their natural resources advantages. I think, for the China National Tourism Day, it is a really good opportunity for different places in China to exchange their opinions and experiences. In China, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism ranks places of interests in different levels, which are good labels for those places to attract tourists from elsewhere. The Ministry is using several kinds of standards trying to make those places qualified for their ranks, including infrastructure, the food, or even ticket prices. The Ministry is using certain kinds of criteria to give some of these guidelines for those places to develop their tourism.

For national levels, we have the 5A, 4A , and 3A rankings. It depends on their resources and abilities to accommodate the tourists. So these are really good opportunities for those places to share the experiences with others and try to compete. 

China Africa Talk: Zimbabwe, like many countries on the continent, has embarked on intensive capacity building to strategically position the country's tourism sector and how do we market Africa to Africans?

Stanley Banda:  Firstly, Zimbabwe is promoting community-based tourism, anchored by heritage-based tourism. The Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry has been responsive to that need by identifying key tenants of tourism which are mainly heritage-based. The key tenants have been further developed into clusters that drive the country's tourism. 

Among these clusters is the culture and heritage tourism, religious tourism, sports tourism and business tourism, There are 11 clusters in total. These clusters have been developed so as to attract and build tourism around various market segments.  When I look at the Chinese tourism, I think it is primarily based on culture and heritage and rightly so in line with ours which is also a heritage-based tourism. 

Programs to promote domestic travel are being put in place. These include an all-stakeholder approach that involves coming up with special packages targeted at the domestic market that ranges from School children, civil servants, youths, women, families, religious and traditional groups, events and conferences among others. All this is anchored on the ZIMBHO domestic promotion to inculcate the spirit of travel amongst all Zimbabweans starting from an early age. Travel ought to be a lifestyle and deliberate approaches by all stakeholders must be put in place to make it so.

There is more that unites us than that which divides us as Africans. It is the same reason that you find inter-Africa travel being on the rise. When you compare travel trends in Africa it shows that more than 50% of the travel is amongst countries from the region. Southern Africa through SADC have their increased travel protocols, so is East and West Africa. Travel within Africa continues to be enhanced by promoting seamless boarders, for example, the free movement of citizenry through a one visa policy in East and West Africa. SADC is also working on modalities to make travel within the region is seamless.

China Africa Talk: What is the role of food culture in promoting local tourism in Zimbabwe and how popular is this culture?

Stanley Banda:  When you talk of food authenticity, you cannot ignore the allure of the food culture, otherwise known as gastronomy tourism. And this goes beyond just recognizing the aspect of food consumption. Here we are looking more at the interconnectivity of culture, heritage, and local norms, which are associated with food preparation, the ingredients that are used in preparing that food, and even the proper eating techniques, all the associations involved. So, this is more of just food. We have seen even the UN Tourism has been promoting this specialty branch of tourism called gastronomy tourism through symposiums and exchange programs, among other activities.

When it comes to this type of tourism, most countries have a lot to learn from China which has perfected its gastronomy tourism, moving away from just promoting Chinese Food to promoting specific region's gastronomy. Before coming to China, I have always been a Chinese food enthusiast, but when I came here, I realized that there is more to just Chinese food as each region has its own unique delicacy, for example, various regions promote the unique aspects of their cuisine, such as Cantonese, Sichuan, Shandong, Fujian, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Hunan (cuisine). Each specific cuisine is unique for certain traits like my favorite Hunan cuisine. Oftentimes I am asked, are you sure? Because it is known for being spicy whilst others are known for being sweet, sour and so on. People travel to experience these dishes.

Zimbabwe's rich food culture had largely remained a traditional custom shared by families and friends and visitors. Now a celebrated national treasure, the practice has now gained more popularity and international fame, through the unwavering dedication to promoting Zimbabwe's rich culinary heritage by the first lady and patron of Tourism, H.E Dr. Auxilia Mnangagwa who has been recognized by UN Tourism for championing gastronomy tourism in Zimbabwe celebrating Zimbabwe's rich culinary traditions and healthy eating through her Amai's cookout competitions across all the nation's 10 provinces. To further encourage Food culture in Africa, the inaugural UN Tourism Regional Forum on Gastronomy Tourism for Africa was held in Victoria Falls in July 2024 with the second one being held in Arusha Tanzania in April 2025. These programs have been further emboldened by programs like farm to market Initiative and the Agrotourism4she Initiative, all of which integrates agriculture with tourism offering exceptional experiences that celebrate Zimbabwe's rich cultural and agricultural landscapes.

China Africa Talk: China has signed bilateral tourism cooperation documents with 31 African countries. How has this been mutually beneficial?

Zhou Mi: In my understanding, these agreements are really important ones to give some signals to the market first, because when China's tourism agents try to collect the people from China, they will know that all these places are suitable and eligible for the people to go, because Africa is very attractive for the wildness and also beautiful sceneries and even the food. So I think that has given a very important signal. And second, I think that will also bring the two sides together with more exchange about information, about the demands from the tourist side, and also the supply from the host side. So they can have a better understanding about each other and try to improve the infrastructure or some kind of software to better accommodate those people. And thirdly, I think it is also helpful for us to give better possibilities for exchange about more information like advertisement. It will also help people know more about Africa, because for many Chinese people, they enjoy the beautiful and mysterious sceneries in Africa, but they maybe do not know quite well about special places and special countries. So, they can make use of these agreements to know more about those countries.

Stanley Banda: Zimbabwe is one of the signatories of these protocols, our formal tourism journey with China began in 2003 when Zimbabwe was among the first African countries to be accorded the Approved Destination Status (ADS). To fully benefit from this status and protocols African countries need to continue working with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in its various programs to promote tourism and people to people exchange between China and Africa. Collaboration among all African states in promoting multi-destination packages that promote the region will go a long way in realizing this goal. Moreover, it is in Africa's interest to take advantage of such platforms provided by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, like the International Tourism Alliance of Silk Road Cities, to promote its tourism along the Silk Road together with China. Similar platforms like the World Tourism Cities Federation also help African cities to spotlight their tourism resources for the Chinese market and the world at large through mutual collaboration of tourism resources. Zimbabwe has taken advantage of these platforms through Great Zimbabwe's acceptance as an inaugural member of the International Tourism Alliance of Silk Road Cities and Victoria Falls' membership of the World Tourism Cities Federation. I call upon fellow African countries to take advantage of these platforms to promote its tourism. 

We need to also collaborate as Africans, because gone are the days where destinations would outshine each other just promote for instance Zimbabwe or Victoria Falls as a destination in isolation. Now it's time to promote inter-regional travel, inter-regional tourism, and promote joint packages to Africa so that we promote an expanse competitive destination. Since it's very costly for one to travel to travel long haul to Africa from China to just visit one place or just to visit one country. Now, it makes it more attractive and valuable for one to visit maybe two, three or four countries on one trip, and that is what we want through these initiatives.