Dubai World Trade Centre to resume events, exhibitions in second half of 2020

Dubai World Trade Centre is gearing up to resume events and exhibitions in the second half of the year, said Helal Saeed Almarri, director-general, Dubai World Trade Centre Authority (DWTCA) and Dubai's Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing.

"We are working aggressively towards restarting and accelerating the return to normalcy of business events - a critical goalpost. Yet, safety of our visitors and assuring a well-rounded experience for every domestic and international participant supersedes all other priorities," Almarri said during a virtual meeting with stakeholders.

Dubai is slowly, but cautiously, reopening its economy following the outbreak of coronavirus pandemic. Restrictions on some other key sectors such as retail, hospitality and aviation have already been eased to some extent and MICE will be the next major industry that will welcome local and foreign visitors and investors.

The virtual meeting was attended by Abdul Salam Al Madani, chairman of Index Holding; Geoff Dickinson, CEO of DMG Events; Peter Hall, president for Europe-Middle East-Africa at Informa; Dawood Al Shezawi, chairman of Strategic Marketing; David Beguely, managing director for Middle East  at Terrapinn; Simon Mellor, managing director for Middle East at Messe Frankfurt; Vasyl Zhygalo, managing director for Middle East at Reed Exhibitions; Trixie LohMirmand, EVP, Events Management, Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC); and Mahir Julfar, EVP Venue Management, DWTC.

"Upcoming events will be conducted in a highly-controlled manner to ensure adherence to the strictest health and safety protocols for public wellbeing. As a result, new regulations will be deployed and announced over the coming weeks as discussed with meeting attendees," DWTCA said in a statement on Wednesday.

"We, at Index Holding, are preparing for the next phase as we have already started to return to our normal activities inside the country and abroad, and we are fully prepared to launch our recent strategic plan equipped with optimism and trust," said Dr. Al Madani.

Simon Mellor said Messe Frankfurt Middle East postponed two of its largest shows, Automechanika Dubai, and Beautyworld Middle East, which will now take place in the fourth quarter of 2020.

"Dubai is a big focus in Q4 as we make preparations for our largest event in the region, Arab Health, taking place in February 2021," Peter Hall said.

"Whether through the introduction and amplification of technology-specific initiatives; continuing to prioritise and boost our customer satisfaction and experiences; or by elevating our sustainable value propositions, we look forward to hosting and organising the upcoming events scheduled to take place in Q4 2020," concluded Almarri.

waheedabbas@khaleejtimes.com