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Having successfully launched several new initiatives and achieved many more milestones, including a visit to India by President Hu Jintao in 2006 (designated the Year of China-India Friendship), the two sides have designated 2007 as the Year of China-India Friendship through Tourism.

As is well-known worldwide, the boom in the tourism industry (including all the inflow and outflow of travelers and their spending power) remains a major driver and one of the most dependable indicators of high-level social development.

A tourism boom comes only with sustained economic growth accompanied by infrastructure development and the creation of jobs in new sectors and regions.

Especially in the case of China and India, the tourism boom is expected to facilitate peace and friendship by raising mutual awareness and enhancing mutual stakes. This also contributes to sustaining both countries' internal stability and long-run development.

However, while Chinese and Indian tourists can be seen around the world, when it comes to visiting each others' countries, many opportunities remain as yet unexplored.

Since 2004, China has been the world's fourth largest tourist destination.

A report released last week, China Tourism Industry: New Opportunities for Growth 2007, projects that China will become the second largest tourism destination (next to the United States) within a decade.

The World Tourism Organization (WTO) expects China to become the world's No 1 tourist destination by 2020, if not earlier.

According to WTO, Chinese tourists now spend more than US$21.8 billion in traveling abroad, already at par with, if not slightly higher than, that of the Japanese.

As for tourism, in 2006 the Chinese mainland is estimated to have had more than 25 million foreign tourists and another 100 million visitors from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. The Chinese mainland is estimated to have earned about US$32 billion from these visitors.

India, on the other hand, is estimated to have had more than 5 million foreign tourists in 2006 and earned more than US$5 billion from tourism. These figures may seem small compared with China, but the Indian tourism industry has been picking up momentum, promising to grow much faster as the Chinese tourism growth rate stabilizes in coming years.

India's Ministry of Tourism expects an annual tourism growth rate of 10 percent, bringing in more than US$12 billion in foreign exchange by 2012. Independent sources are also big on India. Conde Nast Traveler ranked India as the fourth most preferred travel destination and Lonely Planet placed it among the top five destinations from 167 countries for 2006.

Against this backdrop, the China-India Year of Friendship through Tourism can strengthen and accelerate India's tourism and herald a new era of people-to-people goodwill. It can enhance China-India friendship on a lasting basis.

But there remain several hiccups and India can learn several lessons from the successes (and failures) of the China's tourism industry.

The Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Associations of India numbers the total hotel rooms at only 97,000. The association has been asking the government to aim for an annual 10 percent increase to meet tourism targets. India's Planning Commission projects that India will need 160,000 rooms to accommodate 6 million tourists by 2010, and 300,000 rooms to accommodate 9 million tourists by 2020.

The government appears fully aware of this need and has made plans for more hotel rooms a priority.

Failure to reach these targets threatens to make Indian hotels costlier and of poor quality for their price, which largely compromises India's competitiveness as a tourist destination for all, including the Chinese.

This becomes a serious problem when countries like Thailand and Vietnam are aggressively pursuing Chinese tourists while countries such as France, Italy and the United States remain favorite destinations for Chinese tourists.

The solution perhaps lies in both China and India exploring their own unique selling points along with their mutual attractions and interests.

China, for instance, has recently emerged as one of the top destinations for Indians with small businesses, and more than 5,000 Indian students are currently studying in Chinese universities.

The total number of Indians in China has increased exponentially. Indian medical students, particularly from the province of Andhra Pradesh, seem to have redefined China-India travel.

At the same time, given India's expertise in medical sciences, the country has emerged as a medical travel destination for international travelers. This can be one area to attract health-conscious Chinese whose health services have become expensive.

Such initiatives using their unique advantages can help accelerate China-India tourism.
 
Another encouraging development is the reopening of the historic Nathu La Pass between India and China in July 2006. The opening of the third border pass between China and India raises hopes that it will become a gateway for China-India tourism from Tibet to Sikkim.

The Sikkim Chamber of Commerce aims to make this high altitude area a trans-shipment hub like Singapore. By 2011, when Nathu La is scheduled to be open for tourism, more than 300,000 Chinese are expected to travel through the mountain passes.

Beyond the statistics, the flow of people, goods and services across the mountain borders will open several new avenues for building mutual confidence and ensuring tranquility in these remote border areas. The new tourism will also bring prosperity for the isolated communities on both sides of the Himalayan divide.

This tourism will facilitate pilgrimages by Indian Hindus and Sri Lankan Buddhists to Mount Kailash and Mansarovar in China's Tibet and allow Tibetans to freely visit Buddhist monasteries on the Indian side.

And, finally, it would be natural that the two countries cooperate in building India's infrastructure.

China is likely to have large construction capacity and expertise freed up after completion of the Three Gorges Dam and the 2008 Olympics construction, while India's sustained growth rate of 8 percent will enable it to use its increasing resources for building infrastructure.

The future could see China and India launching joint ventures in airports, roads and hotels that enhance India's competitiveness as a tourist destination.

Some of these trends can already be seen, creating a promising backdrop for the Year of China-India Friendship through Tourism and beyond 2007, building ongoing shared interests in promoting each other through tourism.

Dr Swaran Singh is associate professor at the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.

(China Daily January 18, 2007)