A Zimbabwean tourism delegation is expected to participate in this week's China International Travel Mart (CITM), the largest professional travel mart in Asia.

The delegation will be headed by Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) Chief Executive Karikoga Kaseke, who said participating in such an exhibition will help Zimbabwe market itself as a tourist destination of choice the world over.

According to Kaseke, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Zimbabwe has more than tripled over the last five years as the southern African country steps up efforts to cultivate new source markets.

Chinese tourists into Zimbabwe were less than 10,000 per year five years ago, but have risen to 30,000 per annum, Kaseke told Xinhua in an interview recently.

"China has been performing very well for us from the time we started looking at other source markets," Kaseke said.

"The market has been responding very well and very favorably. We are now standing at nearly 30,000 Chinese tourists coming into Zimbabwe per year and it's not a bad number."

China's presence in most sectors of Zimbabwe's economy has been increasing since the country adopted the "Look East" policy in 2006, after its relations with the West got strained over the land reform program.

In recent years, China has also been partnering the ZTA in hosting the annual Sanganai-Hlanganani World Travel and Tourism Africa Fair.

Kaseke said 25 Chinese exhibitors participated at this year's fair, which is aimed at showcasing a wide variety of Africa's tourism products and attracts international buyers, exhibitors and visitors.

The Chinese tourism trade fair jointly organized by the China National Tourism Administration and the Civil Aviation Administration of China will be held at the Shanghai New International Expo Center on Nov. 15-19.