Vilen said more and more Chinese citizens are traveling abroad thanks to China's huge achievement made in its economic reforms and opening up, and that Finland regards China as an important source tourist market. An ADS will give Finland more opportunities,he noted.

Addressing an international tourism show held in Helsinki, the Finnish minister said Finnish authorities have worked out a program aiming to increase the number of overnight Chinese visitors to Finland to 260,000 by 2010.

About 90,000 Chinese paid overnight visits to the country in 2002, a 60 percent increase over the previous year, he added.

The minister noted that the Chinese people traveling abroad totaled more than 13 million in 2002 and the figure is still expected to grow in the near future.

To encourage more Chinese to visit Finland, Vilen said, the Finnish National Tourist Board has opened an office in Beijing.

In addition, The Finnair company has set up a direct flight service between Beijing and Helsinki, which has been the fastest route and a top choice for Chinese tourists heading for Finland or elsewhere in Europe via the country.

China's soaring economy has contributed to its progress into a world leading tourists destination. Meanwhile, the Chinese government has adopted a more active approach to encourage its citizens to travel to other countries.

Up to now, the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) has signed tourism agreements with 15 countries and regions. Among the 15 destinations to allow individual Chinese to go are Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. Discussions with European and American countries are still underway.

(People's Daily January 17, 2003)