The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority has begun courting registered tour operators to accommodate Chinese tourists as part of its effort to promote tourism, the Herald newspaper reported on Monday.

The tourism authority has given the registered tour operators up to Friday to apply for accreditation.

Eligible operators are required to pay 100,000 Zimbabwean dollars (about US$18) in annual registration fees and also deposit a surety bond of at least 50 million Zimbabwean dollars (about US$9,400) with the Ministry of Environment and Tourism of the country.

The operators are also expected to engage Chinese-speaking staff and to package their products in English and Chinese.

Zimbabwe was one of the several African countries, which were granted the approved destination status (ADS) by China during the China-Africa Cooperation Forum held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in December last year.

The ADS status is expected to benefit Zimbabwe as increasing number of Chinese tourists are traveling abroad.
 
(Xinhua News Agency May 31, 2004)