The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) has called for a quick introduction of a direct flight between Zimbabwe and China to boost tourism between the two countries, according to the New Ziana news agency on Wednesday.

ZTA chief executive Tichaona Jokonya was quoted as saying that a direct flight would enable the country to offer tourism services at competitive rates.

"It is only through a direct flight that we will be able to reduce the cost of our packages," he said.

Jokonya said it was disheartening to note that there had been slow progress in the introduction of a direct flight between the two countries even though an agreement had been reached as far back as 1996.

He said the absence of direct flights between the country and strategic source markets was a major obstacle to the development of tourism.

Zimbabwe has been granted the highly acclaimed Approved Destination Status (ADS) by the Asian country as economic cooperation between the two countries continues to grow.

About 20 operators have already expressed interest to service the ADS market.

Tourist arrivals from Europe, Zimbabwe's traditional source market, have declined significantly in recent years due to strained relations over political misunderstandings.

Source: Xinhua