21/10/2026
ZAMBIA, CHINA STRENGTHEN TOURISM TIES TO BOOST VISITOR ARRIVALS
The Zambia Tourism Agency (ZTA) has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening tourism cooperation between Zambia and China through a Business-to-Business (B2B) meeting held in Guangzhou, aimed at building strategic partnerships, developing joint tourism packages and positioning Zambia as a preferred destination for Chinese travellers.
The meeting brought together Zambian and Chinese tourism operators to explore business opportunities, strengthen trade relations and identify strategies for increasing visitor arrivals from the Chinese market.
The meeting was officially opened by Consul General Dr. Daniel Mumba Shimunza, who welcomed participants and thanked them for attending.
He noted that such engagements provide an important platform for connecting business communities, fostering collaboration and identifying opportunities to promote Zambia in the Chinese market.
Dr. Shimunza highlighted Zambia’s diverse tourism offering beyond the iconic Victoria Falls, including its rich wildlife, cultural heritage and Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) tourism, noting the potential to attract a wider range of Chinese travellers.
Speaking at the close of the meeting, ZTA Acting Chief Executive Officer, Ms. Abigail Shansonga, commended the participating tour operators for their active engagement and constructive discussions. She emphasised the importance of translating the connections established into tangible business outcomes through competitive tourism packages tailored to the Chinese market, market intelligence sharing and joint marketing initiatives.
Ms. Shansonga further underscored the need to diversify Zambia’s tourism offering by promoting both leisure and MICE tourism. She noted that stronger collaboration among government institutions, tourism agencies, travel trade partners and private-sector operators would be critical to enhancing Zambia’s competitiveness, attracting investment, increasing visitor expenditure and creating employment opportunities.
The engagement aligns with Zambia’s broader tourism development ambitions under the Grow Zambia Agenda, which seeks to position tourism as a key driver of economic growth, diversification, investment and job creation and meet the 5 million arrivals target by 2031.
Achieving this target will require sustained international destination marketing, stronger partnerships with key source markets, improved tourism products and services, and increased private-sector participation.
Engagements such as the Guangzhou B2B meeting are therefore important in building the commercial relationships and market access needed to expand Zambia’s international tourism print.
