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Zimbabwe has set up four tourism development zones to lure foreign investment in the industry, sources with the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) said on Monday.

The establishment of the development zones will see Zimbabwe maximizing benefits from trans-frontier conservation areas currently being established within the Southern African Development Community region, the sources said.

Five tourism development zones have been set up around the country following the identification of tourism as a key sector under the national economic development priority program, the latest blue-print to Zimbabwe's economic turnaround.

The expected boost in tourism is set to translate into an improvement in foreign currency earnings, said Simbarashe Mandinyenya, an expert in tourism.

Zimbabwe Tourism Authority Chief Executive Karikoga Kaseke said the exploitation of trans-frontier conservation areas is just one strategy the country is taking to boost the country's tourism industry and the establishment of tourism development zones is one of encouraging investment.

Strategies to improve Zimbabwe's image abroad are now in place and these include the vigorous marketing of the country in areas that have received negative publicity on the Zimbabwean story, Kaseke said.

A taskforce on tourism, image and communication is also working hard on initiatives to boost the country's tourism sector, he said.