Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mukhtar Tileuberdi (3rd from the right)，Kazakh Minister of Tourism and Sports Yermek Marzhikpayev (2nd from the right) attend the opening ceremony of Kazakhstan Tourism Year in China in Beijing on March 29, 2024.

 

Kazakh musicians sing The Azalea Flowers in Chinese, which was greeted with warm applause from the audience during the opening ceremony of Kazakhstan Tourism Year and the Tourism Development and Investment Forum in Beijing on March 29, 2024.

In order to implement the important common understandings reached between the two heads of state of China and Kazakhstan that designated 2024 as the Kazakhstan tourism year in China, the opening ceremony of Kazakhstan Tourism Year and the Tourism Development and Investment Forum were held in Beijing on March 28-29.

Within the two days, a series of tourism cooperation agreements were signed under the witness of Ministries of Culture in both countries. Kazakh artists performed classics from both countries at the China National Opera House to celebrate China-Kazakhstan relations ushering in a new golden 30 years, which was greeted with warm applause from the audience. 

Diplomatic officials, business and tourism representatives from the two countries discussed ways to further expand opportunities for Kazakhstan-China investment cooperation in the areas of tourism, air travel, marketing campaign, financial cooperation and corporate funding.

As one of the pioneers of the Belt and Road construction, Kazakhstan enjoys a geographical location which makes it a hub for the Silk Road Economic Belt.

Data from Air China shows a recovering trend of people-to-people exchanges between the two countries. In January 2024, China-Kazakhstan transport capacity of Air China continued to increase, with the number of flights exceeding the same period in 2019 by 4.5 percent.

China's tourism industry is now embracing a new era of development, which offers evidence of the potential and prospects of the Chinese market. In the first quarter of 2024, the tourism entrepreneur confidence index has gradually risen back to above 100, indicating a new boom, according to Tang Xiaoyun, a vice president and professor of China Tourism Academy.