Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau draws record number of events

Business tourism in the capital is set to get a boost as Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau attracts record number of events.

Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau, a division of Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi), has won the bid to host 14 conferences that are expected to attract tens of thousands of delegates over the next four years.

“2016 was a record-breaking year for Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau with the largest number of conference wins to date,” said Saif Saeed Ghobash, the director general at TCA Abu Dhabi.

“These conferences have a highly beneficial economic impact on Abu Dhabi, bringing millions of dirhams of business into the emirate.”

Abu Dhabi is ranked 73rd globally in terms of attracting international association meetings annually, according to the International Congress and Convention Association.

The major events scheduled for this year include World Skills, the world’s largest vocational skills competition, in October with 7,000 participants anticipated from 76 countries. The three-day Gulf Regional Congress on Obesity will also be held this year in September.

In December, up to 15,000 delegates are expected to participate in the five-day International Diabetes Federation 2017 Congress.

Next year, the city will host the International Conference in Medicine and the Healthcare Professions – Ottawa Conferences.

Among the new events heading to the city are Special Olympics World Games in 2019, which is expected to attract 10,000 participants, as well as the World Road Congress and the World Energy Congress the same year.

Other bids the Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau won last year include the sixth Congress of the World Union of Wound Healing Societies, which is expected to attract 6,000 wound care professionals in 2020, and the World Conference of Family Doctors with about 4,000 delegates.

In October, the Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau signed an agreement with the Emirates Medical Association and Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company to turn Abu Dhabi into an international medical meetings hub for the healthcare sector.

The number of corporate meetings coming to Abu Dhabi has been on the rise.

Last October, Abu Dhabi hosted members of the Travel Agents Association of India and the Association of British Travel Agents.

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