Rural tourism helps to alleviate poverty in China, especially in backward provinces with a large number of ethnic minorities and rich ethnic culture, said an official with the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) on Wednesday.

Tim Bartlett, a consultant at UNWTO, said on the 2006 International Forum on Rural Tourism that rural tourism is helping the country's large rural population shake off poverty while avoiding relocation.

Bartlett, attending the two-day forum in Guiyang, capital of southwestern province of Guizhou, said that provinces like Guizhou, home to 17 ethnic minorities, have huge potential to develop rural tourism.

"Its remote mountains have prevented the ethnic population from losing their traditions, languages, unique food and clothing."

More than 200 tourist industry representatives and experts from 16 countries and regions on Wednesday passed the Guiyang Declaration, encouraging the appropriate use of ethnic cultural heritage by promoting the design, production and marketing of tourism products, of which handicrafts make up the largest portion.

The declaration also said that while developing tourism in rural areas, equal importance should be attached to the preservation of unique cultural heritages.

UNWTO called for Chinese financial institutions to fund the development of the new-emerging industry.

The forum, which ended on Wednesday, was organized by the China National Tourism Administration, the UNWTO, the World Bank and the provincial government of Guizhou.

Guizhou was chosen as the venue to showcase China's rural tourism development efforts. It has committed to promoting its ethnic brand of cultural tourism, its rural diversity and unique scenic spots. Its emerging rural tourism industry has helped many impoverished villages free themselves from the shackles of poverty.

According to the statistics from China National Tourism Administration, 70 percent of urban tourists choose rural tourist destinations during China's three "golden-week" peak travel seasons in May, October and Spring Festival or China's Lunar New Year. Over 60 million tourists flock to rural tourist spots every such week.

(Xinhua News Agency September 7, 2006)