HONG KONG, June 23 (Xinhuanet) -- The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) announced on Monday a wide-ranging program that will be staged over the next nine months to generate a recovery in the tourism industry following Hong Kong's removal from the WHO list of SARS affected areas.

HKTB Chairman Selina Chow said that in line with the community-wide revival efforts being led by the government's Economic Relaunch Strategy Group, the HKTB launched the comeback campaign to rebuild Hong Kong's reputation as one of the world's most diverse and exciting destinations.

She expected that number of visitor arrivals will pick up in the next three months as Hong Kong has been removed from the list by the World Health Organization.

Hong Kong's biggest airliner Cathay Pacific Airways also announced Monday that it will give away more than 10,000 free tickets to support the HKTB's effort to rebuild local tourism industry.

The free tickets will be used to support HKTB promotion campaigns all over the world. They will be distributed as competition prizes worldwide, used to support the launch of the board's Welcome Day event in August and help bring international visitors to Hong Kong.

The airliner also confirmed that it will soon operate a full pre-SARS flight schedule.

The airliner's Director and Chief Operation Officer Philip Chensaid Hong Kong getting a clean bill of health is great news and heralds life in Hong Kong fully returning to normal. Enditem