Zimbabwe expect Australia to tour their country despite the Australian government's instruction to its team to abandon the venture.

"Under the Future Tours Program, Australia are due to tour Zimbabwe in September," Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) media manager Lovemore Banda said.

"That is the document we are working with, and we expect Australia to fulfil their obligation," Banda said from Harare.

Banda spoke in the wake of the Australian government telling Ricky Ponting's team not to visit the troubled African country, where President Robert Mugabe's government has been accused of human rights abuses.

"The government through the foreign minister has written to Cricket Australia (CA) instructing that the tour not go ahead," CA chief executive James Sutherland said on Australian television.

Under International Cricket Council (ICC) regulations, if a government refuses "to grant a consent, exemption, approval or clearance, or imposes any restriction or prohibition" on its team to tour another country, this constitutes acceptable non-compliance with the Future Tours Program Agreement.

Teams that are deemed not to have valid reasons for refusing to tour are liable to be fined at least $US2 million ($A2.42 million).

ZC chairman Peter Chingoka refused to comment while efforts to reach managing director Ozias Bvute failed.

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